Mainz coach Thomas Tuchel is weighing up the pros and cons of launching his side's not-so-secret weapon against Freiburg.

Adam Szalai was a key member of the Mainz team which equalled a Bundesliga record of seven straight wins at the start of last season, but a serious knee injury has seen him sidelined for a year.

He made a brief comeback in last weekend's 3-2 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen and was able to show in that substitute appearance exactly what Mainz have been missing in his absence.

Tuchel must now decide whether he is ready for a full 90 minutes in Sunday's important relegation battle with Freiburg.

"We are going to have to consider long and hard whether it is worth the risk of fielding him in the starting XI," he said.

"His performance against Leverkusen has certainly boosted him.

"Adam is a striker with an extra portion of quality and I had expected him to make such a comeback.

"However, I am not going to get carried away because the question now is whether he can maintain this level.

"Normally, after such a long time out, you fall into a rut at some point."

Freiburg coach Christian Streich has no such headache with his comparatively simple choice of who to send out onto the field at the Coface Arena.

After winning his first game in charge against Augsburg last weekend, Streich should name an unchanged side for tomorrow's trip.

The one exception is Johannes Flum, who is suspended, but Streich would not reveal who would take his place.

"I have not made up my mind yet," he said.

"We will see after our last training session. Anybody who is on the training field is a valid option."