Hamburger SV vs 1. FSV Mainz 05

Hamburger SV welcome Mainz 05 to the Volksparkstadion for just their second Bundesliga fixture of the season. HSV are building on a solid return to the top flight after finishing 13th following promotion, while Mainz want to bounce back from a mid-table slide after a sixth-place finish two seasons ago. Preseason form favors Mainz, who were unbeaten across most of their friendlies, including wins over Bournemouth and Holstein Kiel, while Hamburger SV were up and down, beating Toulouse and Heidenheim but losing to Everton and Rapid Wien. Watch Nadiem Amiri, Mainz's top scorer and creator last season, against HSV's Luka Vušković and Fábio Vieira, joint top scorers in the club's comeback campaign. The sides' head-to-head record is remarkably even. Both teams are still shaking off preseason rust, so expect a cautious, tightly contested opener at the Volksparkstadion. Our prediction: 1-1