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Borussia Dortmund will be looking for their fourth consecutive win in all competitions as they face Mainz away this weekend in the Bundesliga. Lucian Favre's team sit third in the Bundesliga right now and enjoy a two-point lead over Bayern Munich. However, they must get a win here to put pressure on the clubs above them.
Mainz, on the other hand, sit 13th in the league and 3 points in this fixture would help them a lot going forward.
Borussia Dortmund vs Mainz Head to Head
Dortmund historically holds a good record against Mainz, with their last defeat to their weekend's opponents coming three games ago. They have won 15 out of their 26 Bundesliga meetings against them.
Mainz have endured a difficult start to their Bundesliga campaign and are 13th, just three points clear of a relegation playoff place. They just recorded their first back-to-back wins of the season, but have lost nine out of the 14 games so far.
Dortmund just secured their place in the Champions League Round of 16 and are looking like a well-oiled unit at the moment. They have the joint-fewest losses in the division, losing just twice in the German league so far. Also, Farve's side has won their last two league outings, and are the better team heading into this game.
Mainz form (all competitions): WLLWWL
Borussia Dortmund form (all competitions): LDLWWW
Borussia Dortmund vs Mainz Team News
Borussia Dortmund - The former Bundesliga winners will be without three key players this Saturday. Left-back Marcel Schmelzer is out with a torn muscle fibre, while Jacob Bruun Larsen is a doubt. They face more issues in the midfield, as Thomas Delaney has torn ligaments in his ankle and Axel Witsel is out until the new year with a facial injury.
Mainz - Danny Latza, Stefan Bell, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Ji Dong-won and Philipp Mwene are all struggling with injury concerns, and it does not seem likely that they will be risked on to the field so soon.
Borussia Dortmund vs Mainz Predicted Line Ups
Borussia Dortmund possible starting lineup:
Roman Burki; Manuel Akanji, Matt Hummels, Dan-Axel Zagadou; Achraf Hakimi, Julian Weigl, Julian Brandt, Raphael Guerreiro; Thorgan Hazard, Marco Reus, Jadon Sancho
Mainz 05 possible starting lineup:
Robin Zentner; Jeremiah St. Juste, Edimilson Fernandes, Moussa Niakhate; Daniel Brosinski, Pierre Kunde, Ridle Baku, Aaron Martin; Jean-Paul Boetius; Robin Quaison, Taiwo Onisiwo
Borussia Dortmund vs Mainz Prediction
Mainz have been defensively very poor, and they enter this game with a couple of injuries. Despite Dortmund's hot and cold form earlier this season, the team looks confident after their last win in the Champions League and it is hard to see an upset taking place here.
Verdict - Mainz 0-3 Borussia Dortmund
