Mainz vs Bochum prediction: GERMANY: Bundesliga betting tips on match 2023-01-27 14:30.
Mainz suffered what manager Bo Svensson described as the “bitter” heartbreak of taking title aspirants Borussia Dortmund all the way into second half stoppage time, before suffering a 2-1 home defeat with one of the final kicks of the game. That goal was a crushing psychological blow to Mainz and denied them the chance to move more than four points away from upcoming opponents Bochum, who reside in the Bundesliga relegation play-off spot.
It was the second consecutive time at home that Mainz failed to convert a first half opening goal into victory, suggesting they are inching closer to securing a Bundesliga victory after a six match winless league run (D2, L4). Svensson was keen to draw “many positive things” from defeat against Dortmund, and conceding no more than one first-half goal in each of their last five league matches is perhaps one of those positives.
Bochum will be hoping to become the third club to win away to Mainz this term after being in the bottom half at the time of the game, repeating the efforts of Leverkusen (3-0) and Wolfsburg (3-0) earlier in the season. Ironically, it was those two clubs alongside Dortmund who handed Bochum their three most recent Bundesliga away defeats, losing the trio by a combined score of 9-0, though it will be their win at Augsburg (1-0) in the midst of those losses that shows they could cause trouble here for Mainz.
New Bochum boss Thomas Letsch, like Svensson, took an optimistic approach to their 2-0 away defeat to Leverkusen in the previous round, declaring “if we play like this every time we play away from home, we'll get our points”. He knows better than anyone that points are needed here to ward off the relegation zone, particularly with tricky looking trips to Bayern Munich and Werder Bremen on the horizon next month.
Players to watch: Marcus Ingvartsen could have a say in Mainz starting well once again, after five of his seven competitive goals this season arrived before half-time. After scoring in each of Bochum’s last four Bundesliga home wins, three times before the break, Philipp Hofmann will be hoping to counteract Ingvartsen’s first half endeavours.
Hot stat: All but one of Bochum’s last eight Bundesliga matches saw the home side on the day record a HT/FT victory.