Hertha Berlin will seek to edge closer to the top six by beating third-from-bottom Mainz at the Olympiastadion on Friday (20:30 CET/19:30 GMT).
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Hertha earned an impressive 2-0 win at Bayer Leverkusen last time out, and Valentino Lazaro will be looking to build on getting his first Bundesliga goal in that game. Salomon Kalou – the other goalscorer last weekend – will be out to get into double figures for the season, but Davie Selke needs to get over a cold if he is to join them in the home attack. Defender Jordan Torunarigha got a knock against Leverkusen but has a 90 percent of featuring this weekend, according to Hertha boss Pal Dardai.
Mainz suffered a 4-2 defeat at Hoffenheim on Matchday 22, and have now conceded 11 goals in four successive defeats in all competitions. Sandro Schwarz has another defensive worry ahead of their trip to the capital, since France under-21 international Abdou Diallo is suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card of the campaign. Jean-Philippe Gbamin could drop back to centre back, making room for Gerritt Holtmann to return if he is over a back problem.
Watch: See how Hertha stunned Leverkusen.
Probable line-ups
Hertha: Jarstein - Pekarik (c), Stark, Torunarigha, Plattenhardt- Maier, Lustenberger - Darida, Lazaro, Kalou – Selke
Absentees: Kade (ankle), Duda (calf), Rekik (individual training)
Coach: Pal Dardai
Mainz: Adler – Hack, Balogun, Gbamin – Donati, De Jong, Latza, Brosinski – Muto, Berggreen, Holtmann
Absentees: Diallo (suspended)
Coach: Sandro Schwarz
Match stats
Only Bayern Munich (nine league games) and Borussia Dortmund (seven games) are on a longer unbeaten run than Hertha (four games). The Old Lady have also conceded the fewest goals in the second half of the season (three in five matches).Mainz have now lost three Bundesliga matches in a row for the first time under Sandro Schwarz. He currently has the worst top-flight record of any coach in the club’s history. The home side have the best strike rate in the Bundesliga – scoring around once every six shots. Kalou has found the net nine times from only 29 attempts on goal.The 05ers have conceded a Bundesliga-high 41 goals this season, including 18 from set pieces. In their last 10 league games, they have conceded at least two goals every match.Dardai is the second-longest serving manager in the Bundesliga behind Freiburg’s Christian Streich. His first game as head coach of Hertha was just over three years ago, when his team won 2-0 in Mainz.Mainz have won only three league matches since the sides last met, when a Pablo de Blasis penalty gave the 05ers a 1-0 victory on Matchday 6.
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Source: bundesliga.com