Bundesliga: The New Jesse Marsch Era Begins in Leipzig

Mainz vs RB Leipzig

After a whirlwind summer, RB Leipzig are about to embark a new adventure in the upcoming season here in the Bundesliga.

A lot has changed for the Red Bulls after finishing as runners-up behind Bayern Munich last term and they’ll feature a new look starting from their head coach.

Jesse Marsch, who’s had a fruitful stint with RB Salzburg from 2019 up until last season, is set to take over the coaching helm with Julian Nagelsmann moving to join the defending league champions in Bavaria.

The US international’s first challenge will be against Mainz, who finished 12^th at the table last term. Like RB Leipzig, the 05ers also went through a ton of changes this summer and they’ll aim to give their fans a good show over at the MEWA Arena.

For the second consecutive time, Mainz and RB Leipzig will square off in the curtain-raiser. And just like what happened last season, we expect these two to show up and give SBOTOP football fans something talk about this weekend.

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Talking Points

Mainz are undermanned due to COVID-19

Mainz’s preparations for the 2021/22 season has been thrown into chaos since they’ve had an acute COVID-19 outbreak within their camp.

Karim Onisiwo tested positive ahead of their DFB-Pokal first round clash against Elversberg. And he, along with other players and staff, will have to undergo self-isolation for at least 10 days.

The Austrian forward was Mainz’s third-leading scorer last term with four goals and he was touted to take the scoring reins since Jean-Philippe Mateta and Robin Quaison left to play for Crystal Palace and Al-Etiffaq respectively.

But with him on the sidelines, the offence must come from the likes of Jean-Paul Boetius, Adam Szalai, and Jonathan Burkardt. The trio have combined for only five goals and four assists last term and that number has to go up for them to have a chance.

Since his arrival to the club last January, Bo Svensson has worked wonders for Mainz – producing positive Bundesliga 2021 results to lift them out of the relegation zone to finish at the 12^th spot.

Bo Svensson, in fact, already has a better record in Mainz than esteemed predecessors Jurgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel (W9, D6, L5).

However, with limited options available at his disposal, Svensson’s coaching chops will be tested although we can’t fault him entirely if they’ll fall short against RB Leipzig on Sunday.

Jesse Marsch takes center stage for RB Leipzig

Jesse Marsch inherits a roster filled with young talent, which is something that he thrives on.

The American manager got off to a good start with his new squad when they won 4-0 in the DFB-Pokal first round against Sandhausen, which saw Willi Orban, Amadou Haidara, Christopher Nkunku, and Dominik Szoboszlai putting in one goal each.

Marsch’s teams love to hunt for goals and there’s no doubt that he can turn RB Leipzig into an offensive juggernaut given the pieces that he’ll have.

Bundesliga club RB Leipzig confirm the signing of Andre Silva from rivals Eintracht Frankfurt for a fee of €35million — Andre Silva has signed a five-year contract with Bundesliga side RB Leipzig

Former Frankfurt striker Andre Silva should be the primary beneficiary of Marsch’s system, and we won’t be surprised if he can replicate his 28 goals last term – which was good for second behind Robert Lewandowski’s 41.

It’ll be also intriguing to see him work with their young exceptional playmaker Dani Olmo, who emerged as one of the breakout stars in Euro 2020.

History

RB Leipzig have gotten the better of Mainz in their recent matchups. The Red Bulls have won six of their last 10 Bundesliga meetings with Mainz, while scoring more goals against them than any other club (33).

Mainz have lost five of their last six openers in the Bundesliga, with their most recent curtain-raiser victory coming from 2018/19 when they defeated VfB Stuttgart 1-0.

When these two clubs met in matchday 1 last term, RB Leipzig came out of the gates firing en route to a 3-1 triumph as Emil Forsberg, Yussuf Poulsen, and Amadou Haidara scored one goal apiece while Jean-Philippe Mateta notched the consolation goal for the 05ers.

Betting Tip

	Mainz vs RB Leipzig	RB Leipzig Asian Handicap -1.25 @ 1.80
	August 15, 21:30 (GMT+8)

It’s no surprise that RB Leipzig are expected to win in the opener since they’re the heavily favoured club in the Bundesliga 2021 odds.

The Red Bulls are priced at 1.34, while the hosts are the underdogs at 7.40 and a draw is at 5.20 in the 1×2 market.

Mainz would’ve had a better chance against RB Leipzig if only they’ll have a complete squad.

The 05ers are expected to field in a lineup filled with mostly second-string players, although head coach Bo Svensson thrives at being the underdog. But overall, we see RB Leipzig taking this one in what should be a wire-to-wire victory.