Mainz’s improvement under Urs Fischer has been stark, with his first eight competitive games in charge returning just a single defeat.
His side flew out of the traps here as they looked to put pressure on Leipzig, but their momentum was stunted when forward Benedict Hollerbach was stretchered off inside 15 minutes with a serious lower leg injury.
While Die Roten Bullen looked to have weathered that early storm, they ought to have been behind when Phillip Tietz headed wide while unmarked inside the area.
Moments of attacking quality were fleeting for Leipzig, but Antonio Nusa found one with half-time approaching, as he showed Danny da Costa a clean pair of heels down the left wing and stood the ball up for Conrad Harder, who headed into the far corner for just his second goal in German football.
The hosts’ lead was soon extinguished, however, as for the second game running, David Raum gave a penalty away.
He was punished for bundling Tietz over inside the area, and Nadiem Amiri applied the finishing touch from 12 yards deep into stoppage time to restore parity.
Mainz carried that momentum into the second period, and needed just four minutes to complete the turnaround.
Making just his third appearance for the club, Silas picked the ball up from deep and danced through the Mainz defence, breezing past Willi Orban and holding off further challenges before slotting home his first Bundesliga goal since May 2024.
Ole Werner’s men initially struggled to respond, but were left scratching their heads as to how they failed to draw level just beyond the hour when Rômulo Cardoso made a dreadful contract with Yan Diomande’s cutback, meaning he somehow failed to convert from point-blank range.
The hosts’ pressure intensified, with only a last-ditch lunge from Kacper Potulski deflecting Harder’s effort wide of the target. Mainz remained a threat on the break, and came close to doubling their lead when Kaishu Sano broke through and fired at the near post, where Peter Gulacsi made a crucial save. David Raum’s inviting cross from the left then gave Orbán the chance to equalise, but his tame header was easily saved as Leipzig slumped to a third defeat in four home games, leaving them vulnerable to being dumped out of the top-four later in the weekend.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Silas (Mainz)
