Hannover missed the chance to put pressure on their rivals in the race for European football as Elkin Soto secured a 1-1 draw for Mainz 05 this evening.

It was the hosts who dominated for much of the first half, with only a fine stop from Loris Karius preventing Lars Stindl from breaking the deadlock inside the opening five minutes.

The threat of Stindl, Joselu and Jimmy Briand caused regular problems for Mainz, who were forced onto the back foot before eventually conceding in the 26th minute.

Karius had kept Mainz on level terms earlier in the match, but was left helpless when Jimmy Briand curled into the top corner from the edge of the box.

The visitors responded impressively with spells on top either side of the break, and they were a few inches away from an equaliser when Johannes Geis rattled the post with a free kick after the interval.

A lapse of concentration in the Mainz defence almost gifted Hannover a second goal just after the hour mark, but Briand miscued his effort from close range as Karius made a routine save.

Hannover would regret wasting such a clear opportunity as Mainz hit back with 13 minutes remaining when Soto converted after Ron-Robert Zieler had pushed away an effort from Yunus Malli.

The final chance of the evening would fall to Hannover as Joselu latched on to a long ball with a powerful header to force Karius into another impressive save.