“A relegation battle is never easy. Mainz may know this situation, and it may have worked out before, but that is no guarantee it will happen again. You have to stay alert. You have to make sure you do your job. Convincing the players of that is my task now,” with these words Urs Fischer began his work at Mainz 05 last December.
At that point, the Zero Fivers resembled a pile of rubble: After 13 matches, they had a meager six points to their name. Sitting bottom of the table, Mainz had the league’s weakest attack, and only four teams had conceded more goals at that stage.
But just under five months later, the picture has changed radically: 34 points, tenth place, an eight-point cushion over the relegation playoff spot – and even a cautious glance toward Europe is now allowed.
This development clearly bears his signature. Fischer has managed to turn an insecure, unstable team into a solid collective that has worked its way out of the relegation battle and into the safety of mid-table. In the second-half table, Mainz sit in a sensational fifth place. The fact that they managed this despite creative focal point Nadiem Amiri being sidelined at times through injury underlines the stable system Fischer and his staff have implemented at the Bruchweg. Depending on the outcome of the cup competitions, ninth place could even be enough for Europe in the end.
The secret of success
Fischer’s secret is no magic trick, but pragmatism. He brought his tried-and-tested 3-5-2 formation with him and adapted Mainz’s style of play. Under him, the focus shifted much more clearly toward defensive solidity. He especially got their transition defense under control, something that had still been a problem in the first half of the season. Less risk in the build-up, more control over the half-spaces, and at times even brave pressing.
📸 Christof Koepsel – 2026 Getty Images
With winter signings such as Stefan Posch, Phillip Tietz and Sheraldo Becker, the club’s leadership also gave Fischer the kind of player profiles with which he had already enjoyed major success in the past.
Back in his Union Berlin days, they were called Robin Knoche, Kevin Behrens and, oh yes, Sheraldo Becker, but their player profiles and their abilities on and off the ball show clear parallels.
In the second half of the season, the newfound stability proved especially valuable in dealing with setbacks. While Mainz practically fell apart after conceding goals at the start of the campaign, Fischer’s side often showed a response in those situations in the second half of the season. They celebrated impressive comeback wins against Wolfsburg and Leipzig, for example, and still picked up points from losing positions against Stuttgart, Bayern and Borussia Mönchengladbach. Alongside champions Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, Mainz have had the league’s most stable defense in the second half of the season.
Already a hero at Union
In that sense, the Swiss coach’s ability to lead a team into the upper reaches of the table primarily through outstanding defensive work is also something of a trademark. It is a feat he had already perfected at 1. FC Union Berlin.
Fischer not only led the Iron Ones into the Bundesliga, but also established them there with a consistency that left many other promoted sides in the shade. Between 2021 and 2023, Union had one of the league’s three best defenses three times in a row; in the 2022/23 season, they even conceded the fewest goals in the league jointly with Bayern. The crowning achievement was qualification for the Champions League.
The strain of competing on three fronts and a misguided transfer policy in the summer of 2023, when big names like Leonardo Bonucci, Kevin Volland and Robin Gosens came in and the club sacrificed its distinctly Berlin DNA of team unity, led them into a dead end. After 14 matches without a win, Fischer stepped down voluntarily in November 2023 in agreement with those in charge at the Alte Försterei.
Even though it was no longer crowned with sporting success in the end, Fischer left Berlin as a hero. Union president Dirk Zingler found moving words at the farewell press conference at the time: “I only recently made it very clear that Urs Fischer is an outstanding coach, and I remain absolutely convinced of that. His personality and his successful work have shaped our club in recent years and opened up many new possibilities for us. In these five and a half years of working together, respect and trust have developed between us.”
After a break, Fischer is now back and once again proving in Mainz what his greatest strength is: he can transform clubs and their playing systems for the better without bending the club’s character out of shape. He is the calming presence in an often hectic business.
In Mainz, he has once again turned an insecure team into a united force that drives opponents to distraction with its compactness and discipline. Fischer is the clear savior of Mainz’s season, even if he himself would probably reject that label with a modest smile and point to the team instead. But the facts do not lie: wherever Urs Fischer works, something stable grows. He is the man for complicated cases, the architect who turns ruins back into fortresses.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.