MAINZ (DPA, CONVERSEER) – FSV Mainz 05 made it two victories out of two in the Conference League on Thursday, 1-0 over 10-man Zrjinski Mostar.
Sota Kawasaki and Andreas Hanche-Olsen aimed inches wide as Mainz dominated the Bosnian champions from the kick-off.
A goal was just a matter of time, and it came in the 24th when Hanche-Olsen won possession just outside the Mostar penalty area, and the ball eventually came to Nelson Weiper, who first hit the post but then tapped in on the rebound.
Things worsened for Mostar when Igor Savic was shown a straight red card in the 37th minute for a reckless tackle against Ben Bobzien.
Mainz were almost two up in a goalmouth scramble shortly after the restart, and they had a penalty decision in their favour reversed upon review.
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But Mostar were too harmless to manage an equaliser, and Mainz celebrated a much-needed success, given their struggles in the Bundesliga, where they are third from last.
“We had to win a game like this, and it was a lot of fun. We hoped for more goals after the red card, but did a good job overall. The win will push us for the Bundesliga,” Weiper told broadcasters RTL.
