Preview: Borussia Dortmund vs Mainz 05 - prediction, team news, lineups

Two of the Bundesliga's in-form teams are set to clash at Signal Iduna Park on Friday, when title-chasing Borussia Dortmund host Mainz 05.

BVB could make it six top-flight wins in a row this weekend, while Die Nullfunfer are looking for their fifth in six games

Match preview

Niko Kovac's Dortmund looked as if they were to be left in the dust by Bayern Munich once again this season, but their impressive consistency means that the Black and Yellow are now in a position to put pressure on their rivals with another victory.

Last Saturday, BVB downed Wolfsburg 2-1 on the road, thanks to a late winner from Serhou Guirassy after Konstantinos Koulierakis cancelled out Julian Brandt's first-half opener.

That triumph has Kovac's side second in the table, just six points behind Vincent Kompany's Bayern with 13 games to play.

Dortmund will be confident of reducing the gap to the top of the pile to three points before the Bavarians face Werder Bremen on Saturday, a feeling bolstered by the fact that the club are unbeaten at Signal Iduna Park in the Bundesliga.

Additionally, fans of the hosts will take heart from the knowledge that BVB's 10 league clean sheets is the highest total in the division, though it remains to be seen how their defence might fare without the suspended Nico Schlotterbeck.

Meanwhile, it would be fair to say that Urs Fischer has transformed Mainz since his arrival, and the club are significantly better than their lowly league position would suggest.

Die Nullfunfer secured a 2-0 triumph over fellow resurgent side Augsburg last time out, courtesy of two penalties from Nadiem Amiri.

Aside from being a third win on the bounce for Fischer's men, that victory means that Mainz have still only lost once across all competitions so far under the former Union Berlin manager, winning five times and drawing four.

Taking all three points last weekend also lifted Die Nullfunfer clear of the bottom three, and they are now 14th in the league, two points above 16th-placed Werder and only two shy of 10th-placed FC Koln.

However, supporters making the trip to Dortmund on Friday will be wary of the fact that the visitors have won just once of their 10 away games prior to this clash - losing six and drawing three - despite their immense overall improvement.

Borussia Dortmund Bundesliga form:

Borussia Dortmund form (all competitions):

Mainz 05 Bundesliga form:

Team News

Dortmund will be missing centre-back Nico Schlotterbeck on Friday after the vice-captain picked up his fifth yellow card of the season against Wolfsburg, and with Filippo Calixte Mane out and Emre Can also likely to be sidelined, Kovac will need to find solutions.

In their absence, Niklas Sule, Waldemar Anton and Ramy Bensebaini should be on hand to start in BVB's back three, flanked by Daniel Svensson and Julian Ryerson with right wing-back Yan Couto a doubt due to illness.

In the centre of the park, midfielder Marcel Sabitzer is facing a race against time to be fit for this clash after recovering from a calf injury, but if he is unable to make the XI, then Jobe Bellingham and Felix Nmecha look set start once again.

Elsewhere, versatile forward Karim Adeyemi is also closing in on a return from ankle injury, though his participation on Friday is in question, so expect to see Julian Brandt and Maximilian Beier operate behind striker Serhou Guirassy.

As for Mainz, they are still without goalkeeper Robin Zentner following his groin injury in November, while centre-back Maxim Dal is building fitness after his ACL injury, right wing-back Anthony Caci has a hamstring issue and the versatile Lennard Maloney is ill.

With that in mind, Fischer could opt for a defensive trio of Stefan Posch, Stefan Bell and Dominik Kohr in front of shot-stopper Daniel Batz on Friday, with Danny da Costa and Silvan Widmer at wing-back.

Further forward, striker Benedict Hollerbach is out for the season (Achilles), while fellow centre-forward Armindo Sieb (illness) and attacking midfielder Sota Kawasaki (muscle) are doubts, so anticipate a front two of Phillip Tietz and Silas, backed up by Nadiem Amiri.

Borussia Dortmund possible starting lineup:

Kobel; Sule, Anton, Bensebaini; Ryerson, Bellingham, Nmecha, Svensson; Brandt, Beier; Guirassy

Mainz 05 possible starting lineup:

Batz; Posch, Bell, Kohr; Da Costa, Lee, Sano, Amiri, Widmer; Silas, Tietz

We say: Borussia Dortmund 3-1 Mainz 05

Dortmund are in excellent form, and the chance to put pressure on Bayern will only motivate them further on Friday.

Mainz may have improved overall under Fischer, but their away form has been poor, and they could succumb to just their second defeat since the new boss' arrival.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.