RB Leipzig will be looking to keep their Bundesliga title hopes alive when they welcome Mainz 05 to Red Bull Arena on Saturday afternoon.
With a quarter of the season remaining, RB Leipzig occupy fifth place in the table – eight points behind first-placed Borrusia Dortmund.
Can't wait to be back with all of you next Saturday! ❤️🤍 pic.twitter.com/t22rzpzU5t— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) March 25, 2023
Can't wait to be back with all of you next Saturday! ❤️🤍 pic.twitter.com/t22rzpzU5t
As for Mainz, they find themselves ninth – three points outside the European place and eight points shy of RB Leipzig. Can the 05ers close the gap this weekend?
Between October and February, RB Leipzig enjoyed a remarkable 12-game unbeaten streak in the Bundesliga, picking up eight wins and four draws along the way.
But the Red Bulls have taken a turn for the worse since then, suffering three defeats in six league outings to leave them eight points behind Dortmund.
That said, Leipzig will be confident of returning to winning ways on Saturday, as they have lost just four of their past 32 home games across all competitions.
It is also worth noting that Leipzig have scored at least one goal in each of their past 25 home matches, underlining their strength at Red Bull Arena.
On the flip side, Mainz 05 head into Saturday’s clash on a six-game unbeaten streak, having taken 14 points from a possible 18 since their last loss.
After grabbing four straight wins against Augsburg, Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Monchengladbach and Hoffenheim, Mainz recorded 1-1 draws with Hertha Berlin and Freiburg.
As a result, only high-flying Borussia Dortmund have picked up more points across the past six matches than Mainz.
It is worth noting, however, that Mainz have only managed to win one of their previous six away outings, highlighting their struggles on the road.
Head-to-head: RB Leipzig were unbeaten against Mainz in 2022, securing a 4-1 victory on home soil before drawing 1-1 in Mainz.
On top of that, Leipzig have won each of their last two home matches against Mainz, scoring a total of seven goals while conceding just twice.
Team news: RB Leipzig are currently without the injured quartet of Peter Gulacsi, Christopher Nkunku, Xaver Schlager and Mohamed Simakan.
Mainz also have a couple of injury absentees at the moment, with Brajan Gruda and Jonathan Burkardt expected to miss Saturday’s clash.
When you couple Leipzig’s strong home record with Mainz’s poor away form, all the signs point towards an easy win for the hosts on Saturday.
Forebet predicts that RB Leipzig will score over 2.5 goals on their way to dispatching Mainz.