The two teams came into this contest in varying form, but both looked to assert themselves in the early stages. While there were positive passages of play, neither was initially able to trouble the opposition goalkeeper as Robin Zentner’s biggest scare came when Stefan Bell ran into him. In a sign that the lack of serious goalmouth action had nothing to do with low commitment, Filip Uremović and Angelo Fulgini required treatment after a clash of heads.
Chidera Ejuke took matters into his own hands on the half-hour mark. Moments after hitting an ambitious strike wide, the Nigerian worked some space in the box and dinked a cross towards Lucas Tousart, who clinically headed home his first Bundesliga goal of the season. Ejuke almost had a goal of his own when he squeezed an effort past Silvan Widmer, but Zentner got a strong hand on the ball to push it away.
Die Alte Dame had a scare shortly after HT when VAR was consulted following Marvin Plattenhardt’s foul on Edimilson Fernandes, but they were relieved when the decision to give a yellow card, rather than a red, was upheld. With the teams cancelling each other out and the heat rising in the contest, this was the first of six second-half bookings, after there had only been one caution in the first period. It seemed as though Mainz’s best opportunity for an equaliser had passed when Leandro Barreiro’s tame header was easily saved by Oliver Christensen.
But Mainz kept pushing for an equaliser, and it eventually came with 30 seconds left on the clock, as Caci latched onto an unconvincing defensive header to score his first Bundesliga goal, earning Die Nullfünfer their second home point of the season. While Hertha remain undefeated in their last three games, they’ll feel as though they’ve lost considering the circumstances.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Chidera Ejuke (Hertha Berlin)
