Mainz 05 vs Borussia Dortmund
The Opel Arena will welcome one of the most dominant attacking forces in the Bundesliga as FSV Mainz 05 will welcome Borussia Dortmund to the Opel Arena on the weekend.
The top of the Bundesliga table is tight as ever, but Dortmund’s emphatic victory earlier in the month has given the BVB some much-needed breathing space between them and the defending champions in Bayern Munich.
Dortmund need to keep the good times rolling and win against a good Mainz team if they want to keep their top spot in the table. Of course, Die Nullfunfer and the rest of the Opel Arena will be doing everything to make life tough for the league leaders, but such is the fate of those who want the top.
This game is definitely BVB’s to lose. The question now is whether they will let themselves be affected by the internal and external pressures or they will thrive and show us another fantastic showing of team football.
Talking Points
Dortmund Zero in on the Top Spot
Tensions were high at the Signal Iduna Park ahead of the season’s first Der Klassiker. The moment the final whistle was blown and the final score was 3-2 in favour of the hosts, Lucien Favre, the Yellow Wall and the entire city were jumping up and down in jubilation.
Now that the biggest contest of the year is done and dealt with for the foreseeable future, Dortmund can now focus on cementing their position at the top of the table while ensuring that they stay at the top of their Champions League group.
The formula behind Dortmund’s sterling start to the season is shown as plain as day on the pitch. Many of the top Bundesliga 2018 highlights show just how deadly Dortmund become when their slow build-ups become quick attacks at the opposite third where either a Paco Alcacer, a Marco Reus or a Jadon Sancho will slot the ball in.
Moreover, there is plenty of youth in this Dortmund team. Christian Pulisic, who is currently rumoured to make a January move away from the club, is a fantastic bench option for the Swiss boss. The backline, led by 19-year-old Dan-Axel Zagadou, is showing plenty of defensive talent despite its knack for making awful errors. The deep-lying midfielders, usually Axel Witsel and Thomas Delaney, have acted as great keys for Dortmund’s low conceded goal numbers.
Honestly, it seems that there’s nothing that can stop Borussia Dortmund from continuously establishing their dominance in the German top flight this season. Even their injury list is comprised of only one person. There is nothing that should be stopping the BVB from taking the three points in Mainz.
Mainz on the Road for an Upset
It does seem like Mainz, who are currently ninth in the Bundesliga table, have no chance with SBOBET fans. However, it’s not like the BVB are indestructible gods whose desires cannot be denied. All Sandro Schwarz has to do is to look at Dortmund’s tight duel with Augsburg to figure out the weaknesses of his rivals’ tactics.
If they stop the slow build-up play and take control of the football from Dortmund’s half, they have a great chance of getting surprise early goals that could easily upend the game’s momentum. While this will require a lot of running from his players, pulling this off could set them up for the biggest result of the weekend.
However, Mainz need to finish their chances if they want to keep themselves in the game. Their defeat to Bayern Munich a month ago showed just how ineffective of an attacking side they are. Jean-Philippe Mateta’s three goals are the highest in a club that is the joint-second-lowest goal haul in the German top flight.
The only thing keeping them in the top half of the table is their defence. They’ve only allowed 12 goals in 11 games, the same number of their guests.
If the tactic to unnerve the Dortmund team was to even work, they need to convert their chances. Given the way they are now, however, I don’t think that’s going to happen.
History
Borussia Dortmund are a tough cookie to beat in the Bundesliga, and I don’t think Mainz can do anything about it. Their last defeat in the league was a last-day heartbreak to Hoffenheim, where they played a different system under a different manager. They play with purpose now, and the results have been pretty one-sided so far.
Mainz have done well after their Bayern loss when they won against Bremen and Freiburg. However, a loss here could see them sink out of the top ten and into 12th place if everything goes wrong for them.
In terms of head-to-heads, Dortmund have the lead with their 13 victories in 24 games. However, it is important to mention that Mainz defeated Dortmund at the Signal Iduna Park in May thanks to goals from Ridle Baku and Yoshinori Muto.
Betting Tip
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Mainz 05 vs Borussia Dortmund | Borussia Dortmund -1.00 @ 2.08 |
| November 24, 22:30 (GMT+8) |
I don’t see any reason why I should veer away from the favourites as there are intriguing Bundesliga 2018 odds in the Asian Handicap market.
While they do have an upcoming Champions League clash, they should have enough depth in their squad to handle both Mainz and Club Brugge. Given the way Dortmund won against Brugge away from home, I don’t see them having any difficulties here.
they should have enough talent to at least beat Mainz 2-0. There is the possibility of Mainz snatching back a goal, of course, but I don’t think they can break through the increasingly confident Borussia backline.
If you are interested in looking at the other markets, the Over Under market has some interesting offers. If you think Mainz will pull off another 2-1 upset, the Correct Score for that is available at 17.50. Meanwhile, a 0-2 Dortmund win is at 8.50.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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| = €20 (Highly confident) |
 = €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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