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Mainz will host Hoffenheim at the Bruchwegstadion on Sunday in a friendly clash between the two sides as they gear up for their Bundesliga return.
The home side enjoyed a decent start to their season but dropped off the pace just before the break, consequently falling behind in the race for European football. They played out a 1-1 draw against Eintracht Frankfurt in their last game and perhaps deserved more from the game after a strong offensive display.
Mainz played out a 2-2 draw against Mallorca in their first friendly outing during the off-season before thrashing Luzern 5-1 last time out. They will be looking to pick up back-to-back wins when they play this weekend.
Hoffenheim have had mixed results under manager Andre Breitenreiter this season and, like their hosts, struggled for results before heading into the winter break. They were beaten 2-1 by Wolfsburg in their last game, squandering the first-half lead handed to them by Christoph Baumgartner in the process.
Saturday's game will mark the visitors' final friendly before the season restarts and they will aim to wrap things up on a high.
Mainz vs Hoffenheim Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- There have been 31 meetings between Mainz and Hoffenheim. The hosts have won 12 of those games, while the visitors have won one fewer. There have been eight draws between the two teams.
- The visitors picked up a 4-1 win in the last meeting between the two sides, ending a four-game winless run in this fixture.
- Hoffenheim are without a clean sheet in their last seven games in this fixture.
- Mainz have picked up seven points on home turf in the league this season. Only Augsburg (5) have picked up fewer.
- Die Kraichgauer have scored 22 league goals this season, the second-highest of all the teams in the bottom half of the Bundesliga standings.
- All four of the 05ers' league draws this season have come on home turf.
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Mainz vs Hoffenheim Prediction
Mainz's latest result ended a five-game winless run across all competitions and they will look to build on that. They have, however, won just one home game all season and could struggle here.
Hoffenheim have lost just one of their last five matches during the international break. They have mixed results away from home this season but should have just enough to win this weekend.
Prediction: Mainz 1-2 Hoffenheim
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Mainz vs Hoffenheim Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Result: Hoffenheim
Tip 2 - Goals - Over/under 2.5 - Over 2.5 goals (Six of the hosts' last eight matches have produced more than 2.5 goals)
Tip 3 - Both teams to score: YES (Both sides have found the back of the net in the visitors' last nine matches)
