Schalke’s season was by no means a complete disaster, but it came very close. A controversial managerial change midway through the season, an early cup exit and a disappointing league finish all contributed to the feeling that the club had been poorly managed throughout the year. The club came into the season with coach Jens Keller in charge and there was a feeling that he had the club moving in a positive direction with a third place finish in the previous campaign and a settled squad from the previous year. But almost immediately they had problems picking up results with a first round exit to third division Dynamo Dresden in the cup the first step towards Keller’s eventual sacking. A disappointing start in the league followed as their first win only came in round 5 away to Werder Bremen though a morale boosting derby win over Borussia Dortmund followed. But the poor overall league start and underpar Champions League results meant that Keller was sacked after round 7, to be replaced by former Chelsea coach Roberto di Matteo. Five wins in seven in the league followed and they managed to scrape through into the knockout stage of the Champions League with a narrow win away to Maribor. At the midpoint of the season fifth place seemed like a good basis for them to grow from after the winter break. Some decent form after Christmas had them move up to third by the time they face Real Madrid in the round of 16. Defeat in the first leg appeared to herald their exit from that competition as well but die Königblauen were in fine form away and almost knocked the reigning winners out of the competition with a 4 - 3 win in a dramatic game. That should have helped to boost morale for the closing rounds of the season but instead they were shocking ten rounds, picking up just two wins at home to bottom placed Paderborn and fifth last Stuttgart. Only the poor form of other teams in the top half meant they remained in contact with the Europa League places, although their Champions League hopes had faded once they lost to Mainz in round 30. They only just held on to sixth and automatic Europa League qualification but their poor league finish led to di Matteo’s resignation, as he jumped before he could be pushed. The season ended with two players being internally banned for their poor attitude and training performance but morale in the squad was visibly on the floor. The new manager has a huge job on his hands to stabilise the squad and sort out who will be useful in the coming season. The morale of the squad also needs to be improved as a priority. Few players have impressed for Schalke this season with no one managing to make more than thirty appearances in a season in which many players were ravaged with injuries. Ralf Fährmann was decent in goal but is not amongst the better goalkeepers in the league, Julian Draxler did well near the end of the year but only managed fifteen appearances throughout an injury hit year. Other players such as Max Meyer, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting were decent for short periods of time. Their best was arguably Benedikt Höwedes, captain and leader on the pitch, who once again put his body on the line for the club and now looks likely to stay for the next couple of seasons. The squad will be built around those players mentioned going into next season, although the next coach has to be able to cope with the pressure from expectant fans and a meddling board and looks likely to have a tough time with a squad which needs improving.
