While things might not exactly be proceeding as planned for Mainz in the Bundesliga, Germany’s Rheinhessen have at least had a chance to enjoy a perfect start to their Europa Conference League campaign. Three straight league losses leave Mainz near the bottom of the Bundesliga table. Two wins to open up their UECL campaign, however, place the team near the top-of-the-pack in Europe.
Bo Henriksen’s Pfälzer were able to follow up a hard-fought 0-1 away win against Omonia Nicosia (prior to which the team had to practice with deflated warm-up balls no less) with a workmanlike 1-0 home win over Zrinjski Mostar on Thursday night. The win – given that Mainz had a man advantage thanks to a Mostar red card in the 37th-minute – wasn’t the prettiest. It nevertheless still counted.
Henriksen and goal-scorer Nelson Weiper made clear that they considered the win something worth celebrating. Weiper expressed the hope that die Nullfünfter could carry the momentum from the narrow victory over to their tough Bundesliga fixture against VfB Stuttgart this Sunday. For all their supposed superiority on paper, Stuttgart dropped their European match on Thursday night.
“We didn’t play well enough.” Henriksen conceded at the post match press conference. “It’s always difficult in Europe, but we have six points from two games. That’s outstanding. It was a great evening for everyone. For our fans, that’s important. These evenings are magical.”
“[The atmosphere] was totally awesome,” Weiper added in the mixed zone. “We’re playing European football at home with our fans. When we win, that naturally pushes us in the Bundesliga too.“
