Nuri Sahin made no excuses after another dismal away performance saw Borussia Dortmund slip to a 3-1 loss at Mainz.

Dortmund saw Emre Can sent off as they fell to a fourth straight away defeat in the Bundesliga.

Saturday's loss leaves them in seventh place, 10 points behind leaders Bayern Munich.

"A difficult away game for us. Once we got that red card it got really hard," said Sahin, whose team have become the second Bundesliga side this century to have zero wins in their first five away games and five wins from their first five home games (after Borussia Monchengladbach in 2013-14).

"We have too few points on the road though I have to analyse today's defeat a bit differently than the other defeats because of the red card.

"With a few more points we would be somewhere else in the table. But for us we just are getting too few points."

Mainz picked up what was their first home win of the season in the Bundesliga, as they made their numerical advantage count following Emre Can's 27th-minute dismissal following a rash tackle. 

"Emre can't go into this challenge like that," Sahin said.

"He wins the first ball and then in the second effort he should stay up."

Borussia Dortmund slumped to a fourth consecutive away defeat on Saturday, losing 3-1 to Mainz after Emre Can's first-half sending-off. 

Dortmund, who had a midweek confidence boost with a 1-0 home win over Sturm Graz in the Champions League, struggled against the hosts and were left with 10 men in the 27th minute when their captain launched a reckless studs-up challenge on Lee Jae-Sung and received a straight red card.

Things got even worse when the South Korean rose to nod a deft finish past Alexander Meyer to give Mainz the lead in the 36th minute.

However, Lee then brought down Serhou Guirassy in the box just four minutes later, with the striker restoring parity from 12 yards.

Dortmund could not hold on until half-time though, as their defence was again caught out when Jonathan Burkardt turned in a cutback in first-half stoppage time.

After the break, Mainz picked up where they had left off, bagging a third goal through Paul Nebel, who coolly slid in from the edge of the six-yard box in the 54th minute.

Dortmund, who have lost four of their five away league games this season and drawn the other, are on 16 points in seventh spot. Mainz are three points behind in 10th.

Data Debrief: Away day woes

Dortmund have won just one of their away games in all competitions this season - a 3-0 victory over Club Brugge in the Champions League - but there does not seem to be an end in sight to their troubles.

It is the first time that Dortmund have lost six competitive away games on the bounce since 2006-07, but Nuri Sahin's bigger worry will be the fact that they only attempted two shots, with their penalty the only effort on target. 

Meanwhile, Mainz have ended a three-match winless run in the Bundesliga, extending their impressive recent record against Dortmund in the process, as they are unbeaten in four games against the Black and Yellow (W2 D2).

Nuri Sahin is confident that Borussia Dortmund's back-to-back victories will help improve spirits within their depleted squad ahead of facing Mainz in the Bundesliga. 

The likes of Gregor Kobel, Karim Adeyemi, Julien Duranville, Gio Reyna, Niklas Sule, Waldemar Anton, Julian Ryerson and Yan Couto are all notable absentees for BVB. 

However, Sahin's side followed up their impressive league win over RB Leipzig last week with a 1-0 win over Sturm Graz in the Champions League on Tuesday. 

The win saw Sahin become the first Dortmund boss since the Bundesliga was founded to win each of his first seven home matches in charge (all competitions).

However, their struggles, particularly in the Bundesliga, have come away from the Westfalenstadion this season. 

Dortmund have failed to win any of their four away matches in the league. Should they fail to win in Mainz, they would become the second side this century to have zero wins in their first five away games and five wins from their first five home games. 

Borussia Monchengladbach were the last team to go on a similar run in 2013-14, while the last time Dortmund experienced this stretch of form came in 1967-68. 

However, Sahin revealed that their recent victories have improved the mood in the dressing room, and is positive his players can stop the rot away from home. 

"We have not really trained as a team on the pitch yet (after the win over Graz)," Sahin told a press conference.

"But the atmosphere is obviously more relaxed. Victories always do well and especially the way we won." It is normal there's more laughter after wins than after defeats."

Dortmund currently sit fifth in the Bundesliga standings after nine games, seven points behind league leaders Bayern Munich. 

Sahin's side do, however, have the opportunity to close the gap at the summit ahead of the final international break of 2024. 

The BVB head coach welcomed the two-week break as an opportunity to nurse his injury-hit squad back to health, though asked his available players for one final push after a difficult few months. 

"It is never easy in Mainz. It will be uncomfortable," Sahin said. "We need to do it one more time before going into the international break."

"It needs to be clear to us that it is about the three points. It does not matter if it is home or away.

"We will try to get those important points to start again after the international break from a better position."

Vincent Kompany insisted Bayern Munich's DFB-Pokal second round tie against Mainz is "just as important as a final", with the aim of improving their cup record. 

Bayern have struggled in previous editions of the tournament, losing to Holstein Kiel, Borussia Monchengladbach and Saarbrucken in the second round in three of the last four editions.

The 20-time champions of the competition reached the quarter-finals against Freiburg in 2022-23 - their best run since winning the title against Bayer Leverkusen in 2020.

Wednesday's fixture offers the chance for Bayern to improve their DFB-Pokal record, though Kompany was not underestimating Mainz's threat. 

"We cannot change the past," Kompany told a press conference. "Now it is about what we can deliver tomorrow.

"That is where our entire focus is on. I have a lot of faith in the team."

"In my mentality there is no ranking (of competitions)," Kompany added. "It is always only about the next game.

"For us it is as important as a final because it is the next game and we want to win it and we will do everything to be successful.

"Mainz are strong in one-on-one (situations) and try to put pressure on with their compact game," Kompany added.

"It is a Cup game and no easy task. It is important that we keep at it."

Kompany led his side back to winning ways in the Bundesliga at the weekend with a 5-0 thrashing of Bochum after losing to Barcelona in the Champions League. 

Barca's 4-1 triumph ended a run of six games without a win against Bayern in the competition, leaving Kompany's men with three points from their first three games.

But victory over Bochum ensured they remained ahead of RB Leipzig on goal difference at the Bundesliga summit. 

Kompany has seen his team net 12 goals in their last three matches, and was happy with the players' response to their midweek humbling against Barca.

"We remained calm and worked on the details to get better," Kompany said of his team's efforts last week.

"That is the way it is now as well. Our goal is to take that next step."

Brajan Gruda has left Mainz for Brighton and Hove Albion in a reported £25.8million (€30m) deal.

The Germany Under-21 international established himself as a key man for Mainz last season, scoring four goals and assisting three more in 28 Bundesliga appearances.

As well as contributing in the final third, Gruda thrilled supporters with his dribbling style.

Indeed, his 76 carries with a take-on ranked third in the Bundesliga in 2023-24, behind only Leroy Sane (94) and Chris Fuhrich (83).

The 20-year-old earned admiring glances from around Europe, but it is Brighton who have moved to sign him on a contract until 2028.

Gruda becomes Brighton's second big right-sided winger signing of this transfer window, with the Seagulls having also bought Yankuba Minteh from Newcastle United.

Minteh, who has shone for Brighton in pre-season, spent last season on loan at Feyenoord and scored 10 Eredivisie goals across 27 matches, also netting once in the Champions League.

Jurgen Klopp has suggested he is more likely to retire than step back into management.

Klopp left Liverpool at the end of last season, and is enjoying a sabbatical away from the game.

The German had been linked with the vacant England job, but has distanced himself from such speculation, while he also reportedly turned down an offer to coach the United States.

And now the 57-year-old, who coached Mainz before leading Borussia Dortmund to back-to-back Bundesliga titles, has claimed, for the time being, he is considering himself as retired, though he did leave the door open to return to football in some capacity.

"Let's see what it will look like in a few months. Nothing is coming through at the moment," Klopp said.

"As of today, that's it for me as a coach. I didn't quit on a whim, it was a general decision.

"I've also coached the best clubs in the world. Maybe we can talk about it again in a few months.

"I still want to work in football and help people with my experience and contacts. Let's see what else there is for me."

Klopp has won 13 major honours during his managerial career, but enjoyed his most success across his nine-year stint at Anfield. 

The 57-year-old would lead Liverpool to eight major trophies, including their first Premier League title and their sixth success in the Champions League. 

Of the three sides he managed, Klopp managed more games (491), oversaw more wins (299) and scored more goals (1035) during his Liverpool tenure. 

Should this be the end for Klopp, he ends his managerial career having won 584 of his 1075 games in charge, averaging 1.87 points per game across his 23-year career.

Union Berlin scored a stoppage-time winner against Freiburg to secure their Bundesliga safety, despite missing two penalties on a dramatic final day.

Marco Grote's side, who participated in the Champions League during the first half of this season under former coach Urs Fischer, occupied the relegation play-off spot heading into the final day of the campaign.

Just three points clear of 17th-place Koln, who travelled to Heidenheim, they welcomed Freiburg to Stadion An der Alten Forsterei, knowing a defeat could spell the end of their five-year stay in the German top flight.

Mainz, two points clear of Union in 15th, moved themselves out of the relegation picture with a commanding 3-1 win at Wolfsburg.

That meant one of Union, Bochum or Koln would join already relegated Darmstadt in the second tier. One would have to settle for a play-off place, while the other would survive.

Koln went down 4-1 at Heidenheim, while Bochum's defeat at Werder Bremen by the same scoreline meant Union could leapfrog them with victory over Freiburg.

The hosts, for whom Josip Juranovic missed a first-half penalty, broke the deadlock in the 68th minute through Benedict Hollerbach.

However, they looked set for a relegation play-off when Ritsu Doan equalised for the visitors with five minutes remaining, before substitute Kevin Volland struck the post with his spot-kick early in stoppage time.

Nevertheless, there was to be a dramatic late twist as Janik Haberer struck in the 92nd minute to catapult Union out of the bottom three and to safety in 15th place.

Edin Terzic warned Borussia Dortmund must swiftly forget about their Champions League heroics in Paris after a 3-0 humbling by Mainz on Saturday.

Lee Jae-Sung twice punished a sloppy Dortmund performance after Leandro Barreiro had opened the scoring for relegation-battling Mainz in their Bundesliga clash.

That abject performance came after BVB managed a 1-0 away victory against Paris Saint-Germain, progressing to the Champions League final after a 2-0 aggregate victory over Luis Enrique's side.

Dortmund head coach Terzic was far from impressed after defeat against Mainz left his side four points adrift of fourth-placed RB Leipzig in the German top flight.

"Let's let Paris be Paris and talk about last week and this week," Terzic told Sky Sport Germany.

"The starting position was similar to last week. Except now we were always late and outnumbered.

"It was a deserved defeat, especially because of the first half."

Marco Reus echoed Terzic's sentiment after Dortmund came crashing back down to earth following their European success.

"If you see the first half, it's deserved, even at the highest level," the Dortmund veteran added.

"We expect more from ourselves. There was still a lot at stake for Mainz.

"It was important for us to continue to gain self-confidence. That just was not good today. This is a pity."

Dortmund will hope to respond when they host Darmstadt next Saturday before their Champions League final against Real Madrid on June 1 at Wembley Stadium.

Borussia Dortmund will not go easy on Mainz in the Bundesliga on Saturday as they look to maintain their rhythm ahead of the Champions League final, says coach Edin Terzic.

Dortmund are fifth in the Bundesliga with two games remaining, with the performances of German clubs in Europe ensuring that will be enough for Champions League participation next season.

They are also building towards their third appearance in the final of Europe's premier club competition, having overcome Paris Saint-Germain 2-0 on aggregate in the last four.

While all eyes will soon turn to their trip to Wembley Stadium to face Real Madrid on June 1, Terzic is determined that his side maintain their intensity levels, even if he rotates his squad.

"Through this rotation we not only keep the team physically and emotionally fresh but we also give chances to other players," Terzic told reporters on Friday.

"Our season just got a bit longer and we want to keep the rhythm up. It is about what we have built up in the past weeks and us wanting to still achieve something big, and that cannot happen with us shifting down a gear.

"We want to make these weeks the best weeks of the season."

Mainz denied Dortmund the Bundesliga title last season, snatching a 2-2 draw against BVB on the final day as Bayern Munich swooped in to retain their crown. 

They are now battling against relegation, but Terzic is not thinking of Saturday's game as a chance for payback.

"They did spoil our summer last year, but they did it fair and square. They had a say last season and did it well," he said. "Now we have the chance to have an influence." 

Mainz are in 16th place, currently occupying the relegation play-off spot, five points ahead of 17th-placed Cologne.

More importantly for Terzic, the game marks the start of a three-week build-up towards the Champions League final.

"We celebrated our qualification for the final on the night and now we have to deal with the situation pragmatically," he said.

"Now a new preparation starts for the Champions League final with these remaining two Bundesliga matches."

Thomas Muller has overtaken Bayern Munich team-mate Manuel Neuer as the player with the most Bundesliga wins in history.

Muller won his 323rd game in Germany's top flight as he helped Bayern beat Mainz 3-1 on Saturday.

That sets him clear of Neuer as the outright leader for Bundesliga victories.

Muller's contribution at Mewa Arena was limited as he replaced Kingsley Coman as an 88th-minute substitute, but with fellow Bayern legend Neuer still sidelined by injury, that brief cameo saw Muller edge ahead of his team-mate to claim the record for himself.

Goals from Coman and Harry Kane put Bayern 2-0 up within 16 minutes before Anthony Caci pulled one back for the winless hosts, but Leon Goretzka's second-half strike ensured Bayern ran out 3-1 winners.

The victory maintained Bayern's unbeaten start to the Bundesliga season, though Thomas Tuchel's men still trail surprise contenders Bayer Leverkusen and Stuttgart at the summit.

Muller's standout stats

Muller has played 449 Bundesliga matches, 127 more than any other Bayern player since he made his debut in August 2008.

The 34-year-old has created 884 chances for his team-mates in that time, with Franck Ribery (536) ranking a distant second for the Bavarian giants.

Of current Bayern players, Joshua Kimmich (505) is the closest to Muller, who has directly contributed to 306 Bundesliga goals, another team-high. Robert Lewandowski is second, with 273 goal contributions.

Lewandowski (238) is the only player to have scored more Bundesliga goals for Bayern than Muller (144) since the latter made his bow for the club, while the Germany international has provided 162 assists, almost 80 clear of second-best Ribery (85).

Muller has had 2,448 touches in the opposition box, over 500 more than any other Bayern team-mate since he made his Bundesliga debut, while he has also had the most duels (4,314), winning 1,904 of them.

His best goalscoring season came in 2015-16, when he netted 20 times in the Bundesliga and provided five assists.

However, it was in the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons that Muller provided his most goal contributions in the Bundesliga, with 29 in each campaign.

Muller netted eight times in 2019-20, but supplied 21 assists. The following term, he teed up 18 goals and scored 11 himself.

Borussia Dortmund suffered final-day heartbreak as they missed out on a first Bundesliga title for 11 years on goal difference, despite fighting back for a 2-2 draw against Mainz.

Edin Terzic's side squandered the opportunity to be crowned champions of Germany as Bayern Munich snatched the title with a dramatic 2-1 victory over Koln, as Jamal Musiala hit a late winner for Thomas Tuchel's men.

Dortmund were always playing catch-up after falling 2-0 down to first-half goals from Andreas Hanche-Olsen and Karim Onisiwo, while Sebastien Haller saw a weak penalty saved.

Raphael Guerreiro gave them hope in the second half, but Musiala's late strike for Bayern at RheinEnergie Stadion rendered Niklas Sule's last-gasp BVB equaliser academic.

Thomas Tuchel thinks Bayern Munich resemble "a team that has played 70 or 80 games" after the lethargic Bavarians let more Bundesliga points slip away in a 3-1 defeat at Mainz.

Bayern looked likely to extend their lead over second-placed Borussia Dortmund to five points when Sadio Mane put them ahead, but an astonishing second-half collapse continued Tuchel's troubling start to life at the club.

Goals from Ludovic Ajorque, Leandro Barreiro and Aaron Martin dealt Tuchel his third loss in seven games at the helm, denting Bayern's hopes of an 11th consecutive league title.

Bayern have now gone four games without a win across all competitions, and Tuchel believes a lack of energy is responsible for their downturn.

"I don't think it's a technical or tactical problem," Tuchel said. "We look like we have tired legs, we're anything but fresh. It feels like we're playing in extra time every time we take to the pitch.

"It's very difficult to bring over new content or new ideas, because everyone is fighting with themselves right now.

"There are long phases in all the games where we're good, and then in the short phases where we're not. We're letting points slip through our fingers. It's going through our hands like sand.

"We have no energy. We look like a team that has played 70 or 80 games this season. We're missing physicality, intensity, the foundation that you always need."

Asked whether a lack of incentive was an issue for a group of players used to dominating the Bundesliga, Tuchel said: "I don't think it's down to a big motivational problem when it comes to an 11th or 12th title. 

"We have the best squad in the league, we have the biggest budget in the league, and it really is our expectation and demand to be title winners at the end of the season.

"But what comes with that are the things that are going against us, not just for the last three weeks, but for a while now. There's no sense of entitlement. We're playing without a sense of urgency.

"It feels like we're just stumbling a bit. We could have been two or three-nil up in this match, and we would have had a very different press conference, but we didn't do that. Then of course, we could have defended the goals, but we didn't do that either."

In all competitions, Bayern have now suffered as many defeats in seven games under Tuchel (three), as they did in 37 contests under his predecessor Julian Nagelsmann this season.

Asked if he felt responsible for Bayern's downturn despite his limited time with the players, Tuchel said: "I always find myself responsible, regardless of whether I've been here for one day, one month or one year. 

"We've lost a lot of points in the second half of the season and right now, we're not in a position to hit our top performance levels. I feel responsible, but ultimately, everyone is responsible."

Bayern Munich's troubling start to Thomas Tuchel's reign continued as the champions slumped to a 3-1 defeat to Mainz at Mewa Arena on Saturday.

Die Roten looked to be on track to bounce back from their midweek Champions League elimination by Manchester City, but they were sensationally pegged back by Tuchel's former team as Bayern's winless streak stretched to four matches.

Sadio Mane gave Bayern a deserved first-half lead from close range, but Mainz showed signs of promise and built on such encouragement after the break when Ludovic Ajorque wiped out the lead.

Leandro Barreiro put Mainz in front 17 minutes from time and Aaron Martin's fine strike soon after finished Bayern off, gifting Borussia Dortmund the opportunity to go top later in the day.

Bayern threatened an early breakthrough when Mane coolly clipped over Mainz goalkeeper Robin Zentner in the 15th minute, only for his goal to be disallowed for offside.

But the visitors did take the lead just before the half-hour mark, Joao Cancelo's left-wing cross leaving Mane with the simplest of headed finishes at the back post.

The hosts were good value for their leveller after the hour, however.

Sommer could only parry Lee Jae-sung's effort and Ajorque was on hand to nod in from a few yards out.

That was merely the start for Mainz.

Eight minutes later, Karim Onisiwo fended off Josip Stanisic when meeting Ajorque's flick-on and subsequently teed up Barreiro, who confidently slotted home.

Martin then put the game beyond Bayern, smashing left-footed into the bottom-right corner from the edge of the box with 11 minutes remaining.

Thomas Tuchel insisted there was nothing personal about his decision to bench Thomas Muller for both legs of Bayern Munich's Champions League quarter-final against Manchester City.

The 33-year-old was omitted from the starting line-up in Manchester and Munich, and Bayern slipped to a 4-1 aggregate defeat to slide out at the last-eight stage for a third consecutive season.

Muller is the most decorated player in Bayern's history, winning 11 Bundesliga titles and two Champions League crowns during his stellar career with the Bavarians.

He has a chance of another domestic league title this season, but that is all Bayern have left to challenge for after their European exit and defeat to Freiburg in the DFB-Pokal quarters.

It would be a calamity if recently appointed Tuchel fell out with club legend Muller, but the coach denies there is any problem between the pair. Indeed, he said he was "extremely impressed" with how Muller accepted his team selections.

"I am a big Thomas Muller fan myself. He has a world-class indefinability," Tuchel said in Friday's pre-match press conference.

"The Manchester games haven't suited him perfectly. Otherwise, he probably would have played. Many games are Muller games.

"Everything is OK at the moment. I was pleased with his reaction on the training ground yesterday. I was extremely impressed. He handled it in an exemplary manner. He just stepped on the gas and pulled the team along.

"But I have to make my decisions, sometimes they are hard. There is no personal note in it. Everyone has to accept it in a competitive situation."

Muller, who made brief substitute appearances in both City games, is likely to start on Saturday when Tuchel goes up against Mainz, one of the Bayern coach's former clubs.

Tuchel has called on Bayern to show more swagger in their remaining games, saying the team have lacked "a dash of determination and a dash of egoism".

"It's important how the team handles the situation. A lot has happened this season," said Tuchel. "The team has experienced a lot."

Bayern lead the Bundesliga by two points from Borussia Dortmund with six rounds of games remaining, and Tuchel stressed the domestic league must not be seen as a consolation prize for a team who craved European glory.

"I experienced it myself in Paris [when coaching Paris Saint-Germain], how sad it is that the championship is taken for granted," Tuchel said.

"It must not be taken for granted. Sure, we won't be celebrated as if an underdog became champion. We will not artificially downplay our claim to become champions.

"A championship is less prone to failure because you have time over a longer period of time. We fight for the title. We shouldn't be ashamed of that."

Julian Nagelsmann had no doubts Joao Cancelo would settle in on his Bayern Munich debut at Mainz after playing under "one of the best managers in the world" in Pep Guardiola.

Bayern have been held to three consecutive 1-1 draws in the Bundesliga, but they ended their winless run with an emphatic 4-0 crushing of Mainz on Wednesday to reach the DFB-Pokal quarter-final.

Manchester City loanee Cancelo started the game, just a day after joining the German champions, and assisted Eric Choupo-Moting's 17th-minute opener with a pinpoint right-wing cross.

Nagelsmann was unsurprised to see wing-back Cancelo flourish on his first start after working under former Bayern head coach Guardiola.

"Joao played a very good game. He was very creative, played some great passes and crosses and also made very good deep runs," he told reporters.

"He was playing under one of the best managers in the world. I just told him to play his game and not to think too much."

Jamal Musiala and Leroy Sane added first-half goals soon after Choupo-Moting's header, before substitute Alphonso Davies secured victory in the latter stages.

Victory marked a significant improvement to Bayern's post-World Cup form, as Nagelsmann hailed an "important" first win in 2023.

He added: "I'm very satisfied with the result and the way we played. Games against Mainz and Bo Svensson's teams are extremely difficult.

"We were more aggressive with the ball going forward than in recent games. We defended well and kept a clean sheet which was important.

"It was a deserved and important win, not only in this competition but also after we failed to win our games since the start of the year. We want more of the same against Wolfsburg on Sunday."