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boss Jurgen Klopp has called Mainz fans to get behind his former club
as they look to stave off the threat of relegation from the Bundesliga.
The O-Fives have been dragged into the relegation scrap following a run of six games without a win, including five straight defeats, which sees them perched on the edge of the drop zone - level on 29 points with 16th-placed Augsburg.
A group of the Carnival club's supporters journeyed to Merseyside last week to meet with Klopp, who spent almost 18 years at the Opel Arena both as a player and manager.
The 49-year-old wrote his name into Mainz folklore when he guided the team to the German top flight for the first time in their history in 2004, and he addressed the travelling fans in an inspirational video message.
"Why I was up for talking about the situation? It's just dead important to me," Klopp said.
"When I got asked about my biggest success in my career, everyone expected me to reply the domestic double at Dortmund. And yes, that was extraordinary and fantastic.
"But looking at our starting position in Mainz in 2001, then it was definitely May 23, 2004, when we won promotion. I will never forget this day."
He continued: "The people are no longer aware of their responsibility and Mainz was the city where every single person, in the stadium or in front of the TV, was involved in the fight to achieve sporting goals. I loved that.
"We took more knocks than maybe most of the other clubs but we all came out of the situation stronger. Since I will one day return to Mainz to live there, I'd be delighted if it were a still a Bundesliga city.
"I hope that everyone knows what's at stake. We all know that football is not the most important thing in the world, but it's a wonderful way of celebrating success together and also sometimes suffer defeats.
"Nobody's shown that better than Mainz - and thus I'd say get up, buy a ticket and shout your heart out. All of Mainz for one goal!"
