In the English week, the penultimate matchday will be played before the upcoming World Cup break. On Wednesday evening Schalke 04 welcomes the guests of Mainz 05 in the Veltins Arena. Once together in the table cellar, the teams now meet at different eye level.
“It’s definitely not an unimportant game,” said Thomas Reis of the importance of the game. The recently shown increase in performance, combined with an urgently needed and possibly achievable point gain, promises an important duel for royal blue. The coach continues: “You’ve sparked a good euphoria, especially with the away appearance. That’s why the demands are increasing. You have to and want to meet them, it’s a pressure situation. But I think it’s positive pressure. We have to show that Bremen was not a flash in the pan.”
Compared to the away game last Saturday, there are no personnel changes in the Gelsenkirchen team. The long-term injuries are still a concern for the club, especially in central defense. Marius Bülter, who was a bit battered recently, is ready for action again, although he is more likely to sit on the bench at first.
Reis had explained at the pre-match press conference that it was also a possibility to name the same starting XI again. After all, despite the result, the good performance provided some courage and confirmed the selection of the players. However, two changes are to be expected.
Not so in goal: Alexander Schwolow remains under the coach. Central defense will again consist of Henning Matriciani, who played a very solid game against Bremen, and Maya Yoshida. Cedric Brunner will also remain as a right-back. Tobias Mohr, on the other hand, is likely to move out of defense on the left. Timothée Kolodziejczak should move up for that.
There is no need to change anything in central midfield either: Alex Kral and Tom Krauß remain in place. Florent Mollet, central but more offensive, will probably appear again. Dominick Drexler has to be patient despite his goal. Kenan Karaman performed well on the right and deserved the renewed confidence. On the left, Bülter will probably rotate out for Jordan Larsson. Simon Terodde remains in the storm center.
Schwolow – Brunner, Yoshida, Matriciani, Kolodziejczak – Kral, Krauss – Karaman, Mollet, Larsson – Terodde
Bo Svensson warned his Mainz team before the duel with the bottom of the table: “Despite the situation in the table, Schalke is not a dead team. They have two great strikers in Terodde and Polter, some failures at the back and good quality in midfield. Schalke are also physically present and will help us asking a lot.”
The 05ers can draw on almost unlimited personnel. “We have the same players that we had against Wolfsburg,” explained Svensson before the game. This means that Suliman Mustapha and Maxim Leitsch are still not an option.
Because the Mainz coach has the same players at his disposal and although the game against Wolfsburg was lost 3-0, hardly any changes in the first team are to be expected among the guests. Robin Zentner will be in goal. In front of him the typical back three consisting of Edimilson Fernandes, Alexander Hack and Anthony Caci.
In the center of midfield everything probably comes down to Anton Stach and Dominik Kohr. The wings are also pretty clear with Silvan Widmer on the right and Aaron Martin on the left. Karim Onisiwo and Marcus Ingvartsen can be expected in the more offensive part. Jea-Sung Lee should also play again. However, a starting eleven chance for Jonathan Burkardt would not be too surprising.
Zentner – Fernandes, Hack, Caci – Widmer, Stach, Koch, Martin – Lee, Onisiwo – Ingvartsen
This article was originally published on 90min.com as lineups: Schalke 04 vs Mainz 05 – how they could play.
