Vincent Kompany's Bayern Munich will hope to pick up their second consecutive win when they travel to face Mainz 05 on Wednesday in the second round of the DFB-Pokal at Mewa Arena.
Mainz are 13th in the Bundesliga with nine points after eight matchweeks and reached the second round after beating Wehen Wiesbaden 3-1 in August, while the Bavarians beat Ulm 4-0 in the first round in August.
Match preview
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The hosts trailed 1-0 against Wehen Wiesbaden after just 14 minutes and needed extra time to make it into the next round after equalising in the 59th minute.
In their last outing on October 25, the O-Fives drew 1-1 with Borussia Monchengladbach in the league, a match in which they were perhaps unfortunate not to win considering they produced more than double Die Fohlen's 0.6 xG.
Despite their strong showing last Friday, Mainz boss Bo Henriksen will still be concerned that his side have only produced 14 big chances in the Bundesliga, the third fewest of the 18 sides in the division.
Henriksen's team have lost three, drawn one and won two of their last six games, scoring eight goals and conceding nine times, failing to score on two occasions.
Mainz have a poor home record of late, drawing two and losing three of their five most recent matches at Mewa Arena.
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As for Bayern, they beat VfL Bochum 5-0 on Sunday and bounced back from their humiliating 4-1 defeat against Barcelona in the Champions League on October 23.
Kompany lauded his players in the aftermath of their win last weekend, saying that he thought they were calm and serious despite the pressure they faced heading into the match.
The Belgian has come under scrutiny in recent weeks for their mixed form, with the club winning two, drawing two and losing two of their last six fixtures.
His side conceded nine goals and scored on 15 occasions in that period, but it should be noted that they conceded first on three occasions.
Despite concerns about their defensive resilience, Bayern have still been rampant goalscorers this term, netting 39 times in just 11 Bundesliga and Champions League matches.
The visitors began their 2024-25 campaign with four consecutive away wins, but they have lost two, drawn one and won one of their subsequent games on the road.
Team News
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Mainz will not be able to call upon centre-back Andreas Hanche-Olsen until late November, as well as right-back Nikolas Veratschnig until early November.
Striker Jonathan Burkardt and midfielder Nadiem Amiri are also not scheduled to return until later next month, so expect Armindo Sieb to start up front as a striker and Kaishu Sano to be partnered by Hyun-Seok Hong in midfield.
In defence, centre-backs Moritz Jenz, Maxim Leitsch and Dominik Kohr may shield goalkeeper Lasse Finn Riess.
Bayern will be unable to field midfielder Aleksandar Pavlovic until the middle of December due to a broken collarbone, while defenders Hiroki Ito, Josip Stanisic and Sacha Boey will also miss out.
Sven Ulreich could come in for keeper Manuel Neuer behind a defence consisting of Adam Aznou, Eric Dier, Dayot Upamecano and Konrad Laimer.
Serge Gnabry, Leroy Sane and Thomas Muller may start in attack behind youngster Mathys Tel, who could replace Harry Kane in the starting XI.
Mainz 05 possible starting lineup:
Riess; Kohr, Jenz, Leitsch; Caci, Sano, Hong, Mwene; Nebel, Lee; Sieb
Bayern Munich possible starting lineup:
Ulreich; Laimer, Upamecano, Dier, Aznou; Kimmich, Goretzka; Sane, Muller, Gnabry; Tel
We say: Mainz 05 1-3 Bayern Munich
Bayern are in mixed form of late and it would not be surprising if they were to concede first on Wednesday.
However, given the sheer depth of the Bavarians' forward line, it is difficult to see how Mainz would be able to hold onto a lead.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Lewis Nolan
