Preview: Hamburger SV vs Mainz 05 - prediction, team news, lineups

Fighting for their first Bundesliga points of the season, Hamburger SV will welcome Mainz 05 to Volksparkstadion on Sunday.

HSV will be hoping to bounce back from their defeat last time out, while Die Nullfunfer are keen to avoid a repeat of their ineffectual opening-day performance.

Match preview

Merlin Polzin's Hamburger enjoyed a commendable 2025-26 campaign, surviving comfortably in the German top flight after securing promotion from the second division.

However, it will take another season of battling for HSV to avoid a dreaded sophomore season drop back down into the 2.Bundesliga.

Polzin's side kicked off this term with a 2-0 defeat against Borussia Dortmund last Saturday, failing to respond to BVB's first-half goals, even when their opponents were reduced to 10 men in the second period.

In fairness to Hamburger, they would not have been expecting to take points against the Black and Yellow - especially not at Signal Iduna Park - but they know that another loss on Sunday could damage morale.

Desperate to get off the mark this weekend, HSV will be buoyed by the support of the Volksparkstadion crowd in what will be their first home game of a long campaign.

Meanwhile, Urs Fischer's Mainz have their sights set on more than mere survival this term, but in order to achieve their European dream, they will need to do better than in their opener.

Die Nullfunfer marked the start of the new season with a frustrating 0-0 draw with SC Paderborn last time out, dropping two points as they were unable to break the promoted club down.

Fischer's side had 21 shots that day, and having missed two big chances to score, they will be hoping to produce a more potent attacking display this weekend.

On a more positive note, Mainz prevented Paderborn from producing even a single shot on target, and if they can replicate that defensive showing on Sunday, then the Carnival Club have every chance of emerging as victors.

Additionally, the visitors are unbeaten across their last seven away games in domestic competitions, recording five wins and two draws, and fans will be expecting a response to Die Nullfunfer's disappointing opener.

Hamburger SV Bundesliga form:

Hamburger SV form (all competitions):

Mainz 05 Bundesliga form:

Mainz 05 form (all competitions):

Team News

Hamburger will be without centre-back Warmed Omari on Sunday as he recovers from a shoulder injury, so expect to see Nicolas Capaldo, Sebastiaan Bornauw and Jordan Torunarigha at the heart of defence, flanked by wing-backs Zakaria El Ouahdi and David Moller Wolfe, while Miro Muheim deals with a groin issue.

Elsewhere, left winger Alexander Rossing continues to be sidelined due to the syndesmosis (ankle) injury he suffered in May, though Martin Adeline and Albert Gronbaek should be on hand to support striker Patson Daka up top.

As for Mainz, they are without midfielders Eric Martel and Paul Nebel while they work their way back from respective knee and groin injuries, so Kaishu Sano will start in the centre of the park, with Lee Jae-sung and Nadiem Amiri in more attacking roles.

Dominik Kohr is also out of action with a foot injury, and Fabio Gruber is likely to be joined by fellow centre-backs Danny da Costa and 18-year-old Kacper Potulski on Sunday.

At the opposite end of the pitch, striker Benedict Hollerbach completed 90 minutes for Mainz II on August 30, and is closing in on a return to the first-team squad, though manager Fischer has stressed that fans need to be more 'patient' regarding Silas, who is recovering from a broken ankle.

In the meantime, the visitors could start a partnership of Sheraldo Becker and Phillip Tietz up front, while wing-backs Anthony Caci and Phillipp Mwene provide width.

Hamburger SV possible starting lineup:

Heuer; Capaldo, Bornauw, Torunarigha; El Ouahdi, Lokonga, Remberg, Moller Wolfe; Adeline, Gronbaek; Daka

Mainz 05 possible starting lineup:

Zentner; Da Costa, Gruber, Potulski; Caci, Sano, Mwene; Lee, Amiri; Becker, Tietz

We say: Hamburger SV 1-2 Mainz 05

Hamburger were comfortably beaten by Dortmund in their opener, but they will be more competitive this weekend, and could find themselves on the scoresheet.

That being said, Mainz are looking to respond to their disappointing draw last time out, and considering their impressive away form, it would not be a surprise to see the visitors triumph by a narrow margin.

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