“Never be afraid”: Henriksen will upset Bayern

Despite the recent humiliation against FC Bayern, Mainz coach Bo Henriksen is optimistic about the cup duel with the German record champions. “I’m never afraid,” emphasized the Dane before the second round game on Wednesday evening (8:45 p.m./ZDF and Sky): “Eleven around eleven, we're playing at home, anything can happen.

At the beginning of March, Mainz lost 8-1 in the Bundesliga at Munich's Allianz Arena; Henriksen had only been in office for a few weeks at the time. “Maybe it was good for us to lose against Bayern. After that game, we didn’t lose eleven games,” the 49-year-old reflected. In the final spurt, the Rheinhessen team secured their place in the league last season.

He has “a good feeling” before the next meeting with Bayern, said Henriksen. “We don’t just want to defend. If you only defend against Bayern, then you will lose. We also want to go forward when the chance arises.”

However, the coach will have to do without his attacker Jonathan Burkardt, who injured his thigh in the Bundesliga game against Borussia Mönchengladbach on Friday. There is still a question mark behind Nadiem Amiri (capsule strain).