With just two points separating these two sides - Roger Schmidt's Bayer Leverkusen side in fifth with 16 points and Kasper Hjulmand's Mainz 05 in ninth with 14 - this promises to be an intriguing fixture. Both sides will fancy their chances and three points for either side will see them sit in a healthy position in the Bundesliga.
"Mainz are a good side and we can't underestimate them"
- Roger Schmidt
With both teams struggling for form, the extra confidence that Leverkusen picked up in their Tuesday night Champions League game will be valuable. A 2-1 victory against Zenit St. Petersburg - courtesy of two second-half goals from Son Heung-Min saw Schdmit's side go atop Group C with nine points from four games. They have essentially qualified for the last 16 and can now turn their attentions to the Bundesliga, where head coach Schmidt knows that they can take nothing for granted: "Mainz are a good team that play attractive football and cover a lot of ground. We can't underestimate them", he said.
Leverkusen will welcome the chance to focus on their domestic efforts, after a dip in recent form has seen them fall out of the top four in the Bundesliga. 16 points from ten games is not an unreasonable total, and Schmidt's side are merely four points adrift of Hoffenheim in fourth. However, a leaky defence - which has conceded 15 goals already this season - has seen Leverkusen fall off the pace. They also go into this fixture after a disappointing 1-0 defeat away to struggling Hamburger SV last weekend - a first-half penalty from captain Rafael van der Vaart the difference.
"We are satisfied with many aspects of our game"
- Kasper Hjulmand
It's a similar story for Hjulmand's Mainz side, who are also struggling for results in the Bundesliga this season. Mainz sit ninth in the leage table, after picking up 14 points in their opening ten games. A strong start to the season has given away to a poor run of results, but manager Hjulmand is comfortable at least with some of his side's performances, if not with their total points: "We're not happy with the amount of points we've earned from recent games, but we are satisfied with many aspects of our game." One thing is for sure: three points away to Leverkusen would be a valuable boost.
Mainz come into this game after losing two consecutive Bundesliga fixtures - 2-1 to Werder Bremen and 3-0 to high-flying Wolfsburg respectively. It is the former that Hjulmand will be most disappointed with, however, as Mainz became the recipients of the league's bottom side's first win of the season. A brace from Argentine striker Franco Di Santo consigned Mainz to a miserable defeat, and Hjulmand's side will be looking to bounce back quickly against Leverkusen on Saturday afternoon.
Leverkusen and Schmidt will have to contend with a long list of absentees - and first-team regulars at that. Kriakos Papadopoulous, Gonzalo Castro, Stefan Reinartz and Simon Rolfes are all sidelined with various problems, whereas defender Tin Jedvaj is suspended. Hakan Calhanoglu could drop into a deeper, defensive midfield position once more.
Hjulmand's Mainz side will be without vital trio Jonas Hofmann, Christoph Moritz and Robin Zentner through injury, but will welcome the return of Joo-Ho Park. Hjulmand has indicated that the South Korean man will not be 100% fit, but is there if needed: "He's not yet 100 per cent fit but he can play," he said.