Xabi Alonso’s Leverkusen were beaten at the death by AS Monaco on Thursday night at the BayArena in their Europa League Play-off first leg.

This wasn’t the only bad news for the Werkself fans on Thursday as they also lost Moussa Diaby to injury early in the second-half, ruling him out of this weekend’s clash with Mainz.

On a more positive note the home faithful will have been glad to see Florian Wirtz get his first goal since returning from injury.

 

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Bo Svensson and his Mainz side have had an up and down time since returning from the winter break.

They most recently beat Augsburg 3-1 to help keep themselves out of the relegation picture.

They will be hoping to take advantage of Leverkusen’s European hangover when they travel to the BayArena on Sunday. 

Team News

Bayer Leverkusen

The home side’s big team news going into this weekend’s fixture is the injury of star winger Diaby.

 

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The Frenchman came off early in the second-half on Thursday night in the Werkself’s Europa League match against AS Monaco with abductor issues.

Leverkusen later revealed he will miss this weekend’s match with a slight thigh injury but he will only be out for seven to ten days to the relief of Alonso. 

Long-term absentees Charles Aranguiz and Andrey Lunev will again be unavailable to Alonso. 

Mainz

Mainz’s young sensation, Jonathan Burkardt will still be on the side lines this weekend as he continues to recover from knee surgery. 

Goalkeeper Robin Zentner is another absentee for the away side, which means Finn Dahmen will make his seventh straight start in the Mainz goal. 

Bar these two absentees Svensson will go into this match with a full squad to choose from. 

Likely Lineups

Bayer Leverkusen

Hradecky, Tapsoba, Tah, Hincapie, Frimpong, Andrich, Demirbay, Sinkgraven, Wirtz, Adli, Hlozek

Mainz

Dahmen, Hanche-Olsen, Bell, Fernandes, Da Costa, Barriero, Stach, Caci, Onisiwo, Lee, Ajorque

Key Players

 

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Bayer Leverkusen: Florian Wirtz

The 19-year-old has had a difficult 12 months but on Thursday night the whole of the world got a reminder of the talent the wonderkid has with a special solo goal against AS Monaco. 

The midfielder was out for 10 months with a cruciate ligament tear but under the tutelage of Alonso not only are Leverkusen fans excited but German fans alike are excited to see what the future holds for the youngster.

After back-to-back starts there is a feeling Wirtz is getting back to his best as well as building fitness.

 

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Mainz: Jae-Sung Lee

The South Korean came in at the start of last season from Holstein Kiel after impressing in the 2. Bundesliga and since then he has been a consistent performer for Svensson’s side.

He already has more goals this season than his debut season in the Bundesliga with six goals in 20 appearances this time round.

He also has two assists to his game playing alongside bagsman Karim Onisiwo up front for Mainz. 

With the arrival of Ludovic Ajorque the 30-year-old is now being asked to play a different role to help his team succeed. 

Match Details

Where is the game being played?

This Sunday’s fixture is being played at the BayArena. 

 

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What time is kick-off?

Kick-off for this round 21 match is scheduled to be at 18:30 GMT.

How can I watch?

The match will be available for UK viewers on Sky Sports Football and US viewers can watch the game on ESPN+.

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