A tricky fixture lies ahead for Mainz who come in to this on the back of a 4-2 defeat to Borussia Dortmund.

That defeat means it was back-to-back losses for the struggling side who really are badly out of form. Frankfurt, however, come in to this after an impressive 1-0 victory of FC Schalke 04 and are unbeaten in three games.

In team news, the hosts have Loris Karius returning from suspension to replace Stefanos Kapino in goal.

Jonas Hofmann is doubtful with a knee injury and could be replaced by Pablo de Blasis or Jairo.

For the visitors, Carlos Zambrano returns from suspension to start at centre-back. Marco Russ could switch to defensive midfield, with Mokoto Hasebe suspended for one match.

Otherwise, manager Thomas Schaaf is not expected to make any changes.

A win for Frankfurt will could cut the gap between them and the European qualification positions should results go their way.

The Eagles will be looking to top scorer Alexander Meier to help them get the result they need. Meier is currently, the league's joint top scorer, with 14 goals.

Mainz are desperate for points as they need to distance themselves and the relegation zone as soon as possible. They will be looking to top scorer Shinji Okazaki (eight goals) to get them back to winning ways a move away from SC Freiburg who are currently 16th.

Mainz's form is very poor, they have failed to win 12 of their last 13 Bundesliga matches. Something has to change, otherwise they will be dragged further in to the relegation troubles. 

They could be boosted by a change of manager, and as with most teams who experience who a change in manager are given a lift, and the players are keen to impress the new man in charge.

The home side have a good record in recent years in this fixture, having been undefeated in the last eight meetings between the sides at the Coface Arena. They will be hoping that run continues. 

Possible line-ups:

Mainz 05:
Karius - Bell, Bungert, Noveski, Bengtsson - Geis, Baumgartlinger - Clemens, Malli, Hofmann - Okazaki

Eintracht Frankfurt:
Trapp - Chandler, Zambrano, Anderson, Oczipka - Russ, Stendera - Aigner, Inui - Seferovic, Meier