After a slap against Freiburg
Coach on the verge of elimination? Mainz boss avoids confession
Updated 12/01/2025 – 10:14 amReading time: 2 minutes
After a weak performance, FSV Mainz 05 suffered their next defeat against SC Freiburg. That could have consequences for the coach.
Eight games without a win, bottom of the Bundesliga table: FSV Mainz 05 is still deep in a sporting crisis. At the end of the 12th matchday, Mainz had to admit defeat against SC Freiburg by a clear score of 4-0 on Sunday evening.
The sporting misery could now also have consequences for coach Bo Henriksen. At least sports director Niko Bungert avoided making a clear commitment to the trainer after the Freiburg bankruptcy. When asked whether Henriksen was still the right person, he replied on the DAZN microphone: “We will certainly discuss this calmly and not announce anything now or debate it live on television.”
“It is of course clear to us that after a game like this and in the current table situation, the situation is extremely unsatisfactory and we will be questioning at every turn what happens next and whether we can achieve the turnaround,” continued Bungert.
When asked whether he was still the right coach, Henriksen himself replied: “The most important thing is that we do our best every day. I have a good feeling about the team and the players.” The players, himself and the club have to get better. When asked again whether he would still be on the sidelines in the next game, he said: “Yes, I think.”
Henriksen’s player Stefan Bell supported his coach and instead took the team to task. He didn’t currently see Mainz at Bundesliga level. “We don’t have anyone who is in normal form. That’s just a shame,” said Bell. “First of all, we are asked to do that on the field. It has to be said that we unfortunately left the coaching team out in the cold today,” he said when asked about Henriksen.
“When the game starts – and I think we had a good plan today – then we first and foremost have to get things right on the field. We’ve actually had a seasoned team on the field in every game so far, with players with quality. We’re simply not getting enough out of it individually and that’s the main problem. That’s our job on the field. We have experience. We have quality, but just far too little performance,” said Bell. He demanded: “Every player can question themselves first. Most players, myself included, are miles away from the form they were in last season.”