Bundesliga: Mainz achieves important home win in relegation battle

It could neither be overlooked nor ignored how important this act of liberation was for everyone involved at FSV Mainz 05. Nadiem Amiri, who was substituted shortly before the end of the game, ran onto the furrowed grass at the final whistle, he clenched his fists, and even before the best footballer in this basement duel against 1. FC Heidenheim, which was won with a lot of noise and 2-1 goals, had put on a jacket, he was already cheering on the fans. A little later, when the new center forward Phillip Tietz entered the dressing room, a loud “Yes” was heard. A loud message that Mainz cannot be defeated so quickly in the relegation battle.

Amiri, 29, and Tietz, 28, demonstratively led the way with their attitude after Mainz’s first home win in eleven months – a 2-0 against St. Pauli on February 22, 2025. “I missed the feeling a lot. There was a lot of pressure on the bowl. We slipped up again and even left last place,” Amiri reported truthfully on the Sky microphone. At the same time, he praised his new playmate in the front line: The striker Tietz, who is a surplus at league rivals Augsburg, embodies exactly the attitude that characterizes a leader in the relegation battle: “Brutal, what Phillip brings with him, especially as a person. He has brought a completely new energy into the team. You can also see on the pitch that we have a great connection.”

In fact, the 2-0 score (49th) scored by national player Amiri with a direct pass was the result of a remarkable co-production with Tietz. “The connection is working well,” said his fellow striker, who said he was “little by little” getting closer to his first goal-scoring experience.

While the Mainz team enjoyed their second win of the season in the Bundesliga, the guests from the Swabian Ostalb felt they were at their lowest point in the first half of the season. “We deserved to be last,” admitted Heidenheim’s coach Frank Schmidt contritely. This is not due to “commitment” or “character,” emphasized Schmidt, but rather because there are too many individual failures. Like the fatal bad pass from goalkeeper Diant Ramaj before the 0-1, when Silvan Widmer shot in after a cross from the quick-action Jae-Sung Lee (30th). “Hopefully this is the starting signal for many victories,” emphasized the Mainz captain, who already has his sights set on his next opponent, 1. FC Köln: “Saturday is a good opportunity to take the next step.”

Mainz almost lost another 2-0 lead

Mainz’s confidence also has to do with the new coach Urs Fischer, who has taken a path that is pretty much the same as he once did with Union Berlin. This Mainz team is also keen to reduce the error rate on defense to a minimum – and based on this, pinpricks in the offense. Fischer has not lost any of his six competitive games with the zero fives so far. “We have taken a step, but it is far from enough,” warned the 59-year-old Swiss in his own tonality.

Once again, as was the case recently at the Alte Försterei in the 2-2 draw against Union Berlin, Mainz was in danger of losing a 2-0 lead after Stefan Schimmer’s goal (60th minute). But when Heidenheim’s Arijon Ibrahimovic deflected a shot, the ball bounced off the bottom edge of the crossbar in front of the line (85th). Fischer explained that you can only regain your self-image “by winning games”. Because: “Victory and points give us confidence.” They also make it easier to recruit additional reinforcements for the second half of the season, as sports director Niko Bungert noted: “We want to find one or two players who will join us. We can credibly assure that the clock ticks differently for us.”

It would only be good if there weren’t as big gaps in the stands in the future as there were on Tuesday evening. Officially 24,500 visitors this season meant a new deficit for the Mainz team, who had actually significantly increased their audience popularity during the entertaining phase under coach Bo Henriksen. Bungert promised that the stands would be full again in the next home game against VfL Wolfsburg, who preferred to highlight “what the fans who were there achieved”. They sent Nadiem Amiri and Co. on a lap of honor and sang carnival songs.