The preparation for the second half of the 2022/23 season is well underway for Mainz 05. The team landed at Aeropuerto de Málaga on Wednesday afternoon, shortly before the squad checked into their rooms and headed straight out the training pitch at the Marbella Football Center. The 05ers will spend a week in Andalusia as they ramp up their preparations ahead of the remainder of the season, which gets underway with a trip to VfB Stuttgart on 21st January.
Friendly on 10th January
Bo Svensson opted for just one friendly match during the camp, which will take place on Tuesday 10th January at 15:00 CET at the Marbella Football Center. The team will take on Swiss first division side FC Luzern over two periods of 60 minutes. “It gives us the opportunity to train more and manage each player’s workload,” explained Svensson, who explained that two games means a lot more preparation and regeneration. “You have to relax before the game and then adjust things the next day. But against Luzern, we’ll try to get everyone playing longer and gets more than sixty minutes in their legs.”
“It’s not a case of a few days with Jonny”
One player was still missing from the 30-man squad for the training camp on Wednesday. Jonathan Burkardt has stayed in Germany as the club monitor the condition of the striker’s knee. It remains unknown whether Burkardt will join up with his teammates in Spain. “We’ll look to see what makes more sense: whether he comes here or does a programme there,” said Svensson, who had the remainder of the season in mind. “The goal is obviously to get him back. We all know that Jonny needs the training sessions and intensity to be able to bring his quality onto the pitch. It’s not a matter of a few days. The important thing is that he’s completely fit again.”
The 05ers will continue with a double session on Thursday, their first full day in Marbella.