Mainz have resisted calls from their own supporters to cancel a pre-season friendly against Newcastle United.

The German club's supporters are unhappy with the Magpies' Saudi ownership.

"A friendly against a big English club is first of all a really good test for us. It's also important for our team's pre-season preparations," said Mainz chairman Stefan Hofmann.

"After weighing up our options and not having an appropriate alternative opponent of this standard available, we agreed to play this game.

"We didn't expect the reaction we got from some fans. We respect them and regret that these concerns have arisen because it's our responsibility to start the new season as one big unit together with our fans."