Our next opponents: Where Lichte wants to start

Position

The only win for Mainz so far this season was in the DFB Cup. The team from Rheinhessen secured a comfortable 5-1 win against Regional League side TSV Havelse after initial problems in the game. The start to the Bundesliga campaign has been anything but optimal. Mainz competed well in the 3-1 defeat at Leipzig in the opening game but head coach Achim Beierlorzer had to step down following a 4-1 home defeat against Stuttgart – and a new coach had to be found after just two matchdays.

Jan-Moritz Lichte is not really that new at Mainz – and many Leverkusen fans will still remember the 40-year-old. From 2012 to 2014, Lichte was the Werkself assistant coach for almost two years under Sami Hyypiä and Sascha Lewandowski and he made his name back then as a hard-working expert and tactical guru. Lichte, who was top of the class when he completed his coach training in 2011, has been at Mainz since 2017 – initially also as an assistant and now, for the first time in his career, as the head coach. He was brought in initially on a caretaker basis but the sporting director Rouven Schröder said explicitly after his appointment that Lichte could be a permanent replacement. “I can imagine that in principle,” he said about the interim coach but with one proviso: “That’s not the focus I’m setting.” For starters, Lichte’s job was to get the Mainz team back to winning ways. His debut as a Bundesliga coach ended in a 4-0 defeat at Union Berlin and, ahead of the game against the Werkself, Mainz are still waiting for their first point in the new Bundesliga season.

PersonNEl

The transfer window was already closed when Mainz 05 pounced again: The Austrian Kevin Stöger signed for FSV last week. The playmaker recently showed his class playing for Fortuna Düsseldorf but he was without a club after the end of his contract in the summer – and several teams were after him. Mainz won the race because, “I think I can take the next step here,” said the technically skilled midfielder. Will Stöger play in the game against the Werkself? After three months without a club he has estimated his own fitness level at “60 to 70 per cent.” So it is possible he may not make the line-up for Saturday’s game – or be a substitute.

Otherwise, Lichte practically has his whole squad available against Bayer 04. And striker Adam Szalai, weeded out by former coach Beierlorzer just before his dismissal, is now back in the squad – as is key defender Moussa Niakhaté after serving a one-match ban. The absence of the central defender certainly made itself felt in Berlin.

Performers

The Mainz attack definitely meets the highest Bundesliga requirements. Both Jean-Philippe Mateta and Robin Quaison are incredibly impressive finishers and permanently pose a threat on goal. While Mateta, as a classic central striker, stands out with his goalscoring instinct and strength in the air, Quaison likes to come through the middle or via the wings with his pace and impressive technique his trademark. No wonder that both the Mainz goals were co-productions of the duo: One time it was Quaison to Mateta, then Mateta to Quaison. However, discounting those two, the Mainz attack still has other quality players: Jean-Paul Boetius – soon to be joined by Stöger – add an impressive technical element, Karim Onisiwo has a remarkable physique and the former Leverkusen player Levin Öztunali absolute top speed. The latter made his debut in August 2013 as the youngest Werkself player in the Bundesliga back then. The assistant coach at that time: Jan-Moritz Lichte.

Problems

At his first press conference, Lichte knew exactly where he wants to and has to start. “We have to manage to concede fewer goals,” the interim coach made clear. “We have to develop a defensive structure that makes it possible for us to win a game if we can score one or two goals.” In all of the previous three games this season, Mainz have let in at least three goals with a total of eleven conceded. Last season, 65 goals were conceded after 34 games. “If we do not reduce our average from recent years then we will win less games,” said Lichte. “At the same time, we all have to join in and defending together is something we’ve been missing at times.”

Prediction

After turbulent days and weeks, several things seem to be hanging in the balance at Mainz. Will Lichte be the permanent solution? Can the defence finally become more solid? And above all: Will peace and quiet return in tranquil Mainz? That is something that has often made the team from Rheinhessen so strong. Now Schröder and Lichte have to ensure that the team gets back up to speed on the pitch. The quality to remain in the top-flight is definitely still there.