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Bayer Leverkusen welcome relegation-threatened FSV Mainz to the BayArena on Saturday as the Bundesliga returns with another round of weekend fixtures.
Leverkusen overcame their recent shaky form last week, scoring five past Stuttgart at home.
Kerem Demirbay scored a brace to open proceedings for Peter Bosz's side. Goals from Leon Bailey, Florian Wirtz and Demirai Grayfinishedg the job in the second half.
FSV Mainz are finally getting their season going, with two wins in their previous three games. This change in fortunes follows a dismal start that had them on seven points from the first 17 games.
A Moussa Niakhate penalty saw them overcome Union Berlin's challenge at home.
Bo Svensson's men are still four points off the relegation playoff spot. But their recent form, which also saw them beat title-contenders RB Leipzig a couple of weeks ago, should give them some hope.
Bayer Leverkusen vs FSV Mainz 05 Head-to-Head
Bayer Leverkusen are on a six-game winning streak in this particular fixture against Mainz in the Bundesliga. In that span, Leverkusen have scored 11 goals while conceding only one to Mainz.
Mainz's last win over Bayer came more than three years ago in 2017. Die Nullfünfer will be desperate to end that drought on Saturday.
Bayer Leverkusen form guide (all competitions): W-L-L-L-W
FSV Mainz form guide (all competitions): W-L-W-L-D
Bayer Leverkusen vs FSV Mainz 05 Team News
Bayer Leverkusen
Peter Bosz is dealing with a host of injuries, with Timothy Fosu-Mensah being the latest addition to the treatment table. The defender suffered a knock against Stuttgart and his availability for Saturday's clash remains in serious doubt.
Bayer Leverkusen were already missing six other first-team players and are likely to have a depleted squad for most of February.
Injured: Julian Baumgartlinger, Lars Bender, Mitchell Weiser, Paulinho, Karim Bellarabi, Santiago Arias.
Doubtful: Timothy Fosu-Mensah
FSV Mainz
Despite Mainz's struggles in the league, they have the luxury of having almost their entire squad available for Saturday's trip to Leverkusen.
Forward Robin Quaison is the only player expected to miss out as he recovers from a knee injury.
Injured: Robin Quaison
Doubtful: None
Bayer Leverkusen vs FSV Mainz 05 Predicted Line-up
Bayer Leverkusen Predicted XI (3-4-3): Lukas Hradecky (GK); Aleksandar Dragovic, Jonathan Tah, Edmond Tapsoba; Florian Wirtz, Charles Aranguiz, Kerem Demirbay, Daley Sinkgraven; Leon Bailey, Patrik Schick, Moussa Diaby
FSV Mainz Predicted XI (3-4-1-2): Robin Zentner (GK); Jeremiah St. Juste, Stefan Bell, Moussa Niakhate; Danny da Costa, Leandro Barreiro, Dominik Kohr, Phillipp Mwene; Danny Latza; Adam Szalai, Karim Onisiwo.
Bayer Leverkusen vs FSV Mainz 05 Prediction
Despite putting five past Stuttgart in their previous game, Bayer Leverkusen's recent form has been anything but impressive.
They were knocked out of the DFB-Pokal by fourth division side Essen last week and have accumulated only six points from their previous five Bundesliga games.
Lowly Mainz may seem like the perfect opposition to prevent Bayer's season from going off the rails. Given their recent history, Bayer will cherish hosting their opposition on Saturday.
But Mainz are slowly starting to figure out their problems and could be tricky opposition for any side momentarily struggling for form.
We still expect Bayer Leverkusen to emerge victorious.
Prediction: Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 FSV Mainz
