Form: Fighting record
Schalke’s 1-0 defeat at Arminia Bielefeld on Matchday 30 confirmed that they will be playing in Bundesliga 2 next season. With 13 points after 32 matches, the Royal Blues are well adrift at the foot of the table having recorded just two league wins this season.
They could set a new record for the lowest points tally for a relegated team in the Bundesliga since the three-point rule was introduced. That currently belongs to SC Freiburg, who went down with 18 points in 2005.
| FC Schalke 04 2020/21 | |
|---|---|
| Stats | 2 wins, 7 draws, 23 defeats, 21:82 goal difference, 13 points, 18th in the table |
| Form | W-L-L-L-L |
| Goalscorers | Hoppe (5), Uth (3), Harit (2), Raman (2), Boujellab (1), Huntelaar (1), Kolasinac (1), Mascarell (1), Mustafi (1), Paciencia (1), Serdar (1), Thiaw (1) |
Tactics: Giving youth a chance
While S04 have played in a 4-2-3-1 system for much of the campaign, Dimitrios Grammozis – the club’s fifth coach of the season – has gone with a 3-4-1-2 or 3-5-2 formation.
Schalke’s line-up has been difficult to predict. They’ve used 40 different players, a new Bundesliga record, while no player has featured in all 32 league games. The Royal Blues have also put their faith in youth, with 10 youngsters making their debut in the top flight this season (Malick Thiaw (19), Matthew Hoppe (20), Kilian Ludewig (21), Mehmet Can Aydin (19), Kerim Calhanoglu (18), Florian Flick (21), Luca Schuler (22), Jimmy Kaparos (19), Mikail Maden (19) and Blendi Idrizi (23)).
One to watch: Klaas-Jan Huntelaar
Schalke pulled off a surprise transfer in January with the return of former star Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. The ‘Hunter’ notched 126 goals and 35 assists in 240 competitive appearances for the Gelsenkirchen side between 2010 and 2017.
The Dutchman missed eight of the first nine games after his move due to injury, but has since played in every one. He scored on his first start in the 2-1 defeat at Bayer Leverkusen.
