Our next opponents: Schalke still searching

Position

After the final whistle in the game against FC Augsburg last Sunday (0-0) there was no longer any doubt: Schalke 04 will play in the Bundesliga again next season. At least the potential Royal Blue mega disaster has been avoided at the end of an otherwise almost completely disappointing campaign. After finishing as runners-up last season, coach Dominico Tedesco and sporting managing director Christian Heidel were celebrated as the architects of success. But by the middle of March neither was still in post: Heidel had resigned and Tedesco had been sacked – both for the same reason: They carried the responsibility for a team that was unable to build on the performances of the previous campaign and ended up in a relegation battle rather than the race for a European finish. Tedesco has been replaced by Huub Stevens who was able to give a positive spin on the whole season in just one game: The 4-2 derby win at Borussia Dortmund not only meant success in definitely the most prodigious game of the season but also inflicted a blow on the arch rivals in the title race, and, last but not least, three important points in the battle to stay up. Schalke are still 15th in the table but cannot finish lower. In the best possible scenario they can move up to 12th position.

Personnel

At the end of a season that will lead to major rebuilding, Stevens has been relying more and more on the future of the club: on homegrown youngsters. The talented 19-year-old striker Ahmed Kutucu started against Augsburg and in Nassim Boujellab they have another promising youngster from the Schalke youth setup who Stevens has brought off the bench in several games. The squad also includes the two defenders Jonas Carls (from 2005 to 2016 in the youth section at Bayer 04) and George Timotheu who normally play for the Royal Blues reserves. It is possible that Stevens – also because of injury issues – will give some of the young players another chance against the Werkself on Saturday. The same applies to the 18-year-old forward Rabbi Matondo. The Welshman joined Schalke at the start of the year from Manchester City and he showed huge potential after coming on as a sub against Augsburg. In order to give the youngsters a chance, Stevens has even left out established players like Yevhen Konoplyanka and Nabil Bentaleb.

Problems

In a season where many players failed to live up to expectations it was the attacking side of the game that suffered most at Schalke 04. Often there was a lack of ideas up front and at times the football lacked any dynamism. The result: The Royal Blues strikers rarely had clear-cut chances with the internal top scorers list being led by Daniel Caligiuri who is the designated penalty taker in the team: The Schalke derby hero has scored four of his seven goals this season from the penalty spot. On top of that there have been injury problems in attacking positions: For Mark Uth, who arrived from Hoffenheim with greater expectations ahead of the campaign, the season is already over due to a groin injury and Steven Skrzybski (thigh) may not be fit to play against Bayer 04. One positive is the return of Guido Burgstaller who missed the Augsburg game due to the birth of his child.

Potential

It is a period of upheaval – and above all, weeks of searching. Sporting managing director Jochen Schneider, who was only appointed in March, will have to fill three key posts before the start of the new season. That is a new coach, sporting director and squad development expert. Regardless of which trio joins Schalke in the summer: The first task will be to bring calm to a club rocked by crisis. As the first season under Tedesco showed, it is possible to achieve success with the ongoing outstanding youth development work and a high quality team.

Prediction

Schalke could be a very tough opponent for the Werkself: After a disappointing season, the Royal Blues have a new mentality and also the euphoria of the derby win two weeks ago. The young and hungry youth players want to prove that they can play a bigger role next season. And that's what they are already working on in Gelsenkirchen. So there should be a change in fortune in the next campaign – and with the right personnel decisions in the coming weeks that could definitely be achievable.