Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] The defense could use some re-tooling. I'm not 100% confident in Rangnick right now. He's made some odd decisions thus far. I'm definitely worried about Mainz next weekend (it's weird saying that ).
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] It looks as if Fuchs is suspended for the game against Helsinki because of a red card he got in 2006. Talk about an action with long term influence. ^^ Every coach makes odd decisions all the time. The starting eleven against Stuttgart had some head scratchers but it wasn't too difficult to find some viable explanations for them. Magath made far more and weirder decisions. In the end the team looks far better and compact than last year both on offense and defense thats even true for the game in Stuttgart.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] Very true. And the turn around from the first league game to the second was impressive. Brutal loss to 5-1 win (admittedly the opponents were on slightly different levels).
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] Good grief! Definitely concur with your analysis of the Raul situation...it has the stink of "much ado about nothing".
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] You would have thought the official Blackburn rejection would have killed the "Raul is on his way out" story, but NOOOOOOO: http://www.talksport.co.uk/sports-n...still-set-schalke-exit-despite-blackburn-snub Yes, the fact the club doesn't want Raul to fly to Helsinki to play on artificial turn midweek MUST MEAN he is on his way out.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] Well, the reasoning is fishy. Artificial turf does no longer pose a greater injury risk than normal grass. Its especially fishy if one knows that Real has 5 training pitches with artificial turf since 2005 so Raul should be adjusted to using one. The club at least tried to sell Jones so keeping him and Raul back can look as if they want to sell two of they highest paid players. I wasn't online when it happened but it looks as if Bild and some regional newspapers made a joke of themselves yesterday afternoon (even more than usual). After getting the news about the Blackburn offer they reported the deal sealed and Raul leaving the club. A couple of hours later the club HP (and kicker) informed everybody that both Schalke and Raul had declined the offer. Of course Bild totally reedited the first article without changing the URL or the date and time stamp, in the end reporting the opposite of the original. That's high class journalism.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] Ouch, all the best for the returning leg. Hopefully you can get an early goal to make the Finns nervous.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] A few random thoughts. Defense is an issue. And when I say that, I mean more than the back 4. Our defensive midfielders aren't getting the job done. Matip does subtle things that cause the team to loose shape. It leaves the whole back 4 venerable. Matip just isn't the answer right now, we need a better destroyer. If only Jones could regain some form... We need to find a number 10. Raul plays this role well on occasion, but someone else is needed (for the future, as depth, and/or another option). After Holtby came off, I noticed a significant drop off in the quality of the creative movement. Very few people were making good runs. Jurado can, on occasion, be too casual on the ball when playing defensive midfield. I understand the need to push for a goal, but often his giveaways lead to counters for the oposition.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] That was a mess....and you are right, Holtby showed the only hint of creative flair. Unless we see something VASTLY different, Sunday could be ugly.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] I noticed the same thing about Holtby. It looked as if Jurado and Holtby slowly got some decent attacks going until the substitution stopped any controlled attacking play. I'm also worried/angry by our wing play. It looks as if the only objective there is to cross as often as possible. Unfortunately we no longer have Kuranyi up front. Huntelaar can on occasion use a cross, they are useless for every other striker. Matip had an atrocious phase in the game when he misplayed ball after ball. But he did look better in the other parts. The problem is that he alone can't control the midfield. He desperately needs someone besides him to help both defensively and offensively. If you put Jones or Kluge besides him the defensive may get more stable but the offense will suffer. The opposite is true with Holtby. Of course Stuttgart overran our midfield even when we had Jones and Matip in it. I thought the beginning of the game looked promising. But the players made too many easy mistakes and didn't keep their calm to play the right pass. It looked to me as if Draxler and Moravek were especially prone to it. After the first goal the team looked heavily knocked. I think you could get a hint of what Rangnick wants to see in this phase. We were still too reliant on crosses but the players did try to move inside now and then and either get a shot from distance or play some combinations through the defense. It all looked pretty disjointed and rough as if the team didn't get the (oh so important) details right.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] Another issue I saw was "bunker breaking." This team can't break down event the slightest hint of a bunker. If the other teams puts 8 men behind the ball, we have no chance. I definitely agree with your assessment of Matip. I fear we're facing a similar situation to last season. There simply isn't enough quality to push this team to withing sight of the CL spots or even the EL spots. A good two-way midfielder along Matip or an in-form Jones would go a long way. A quality winger (with both skill AND speed), would also be a great, and perhaps necessary, addition. It can be difficult to assess the back 4 when the midfield is in shambles, but I'd say we have a few decent pieces to the puzzle there. Unfortunately, I still think we're lacking a player who provides organization and speed while defending the counter.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] I don't think you can organize much while defending a counter attack, there is no time to give commands, the players have to act by themselves. The regular backline should be good enough. Papa needs a lot of seasoning but than can only come with playing time. Once he is more reliable Höwedes and him should be a pretty good CB pairing. Uchida at LB was bad. I guess that experiment is finished for good. Hopefully Escudero comes back from injury in a couple of weeks so that we have a regular replacement there, too. Don't forget that Farfan should come back. He should give the offense a push. They can hopefully finalize his extension soon although I'm not really sure Heldt will be able to resign him. I think you need a certain degree of fine tuning to break down a bunker. The team lacks that so no wonder they have difficulties breaking one down. I guess the inexperience of a lot of our creative players adds to the difficulties. If you have more experience, you can work some things out even if the team as a whole isn't working well. Of course any team, including Barca, has problems with bunkering. All in all the team looks somewhat like last year: a bunch of talented individuals that don't form a cohesive union. Rangnick made some progress but there are simply structural problems (too many, too young players for the attacking midfield; no outstanding, allrounded dmid etc) that can't be overcome easily.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] http://www.myp2p.eu/index.php?part=sports Is not working........but can enter from here http://site.myp2pforum.eu/competitio...pline=football
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] What a comeback Is it just me or does anyone else think Fahrmann looks shaky in goal? Anyone have the latest on Raul?
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] I'm definitely staying at Schalke - Raul The former Real Madrid ace has insisted that he will not leave his current club this summer as he wants to stay put and fulfil his contract http://www.goal.com/en/news/15/germany/2011/08/21/2629774/im-definitely-staying-at-schalke-raul
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] Yea, quite a comeback. Half-time subs made the difference (Draxler not that much, but Farfan was huge). Farfan means so much to Schalke. Not sure if Heldt can convince him to extend tho.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] Watching the EL game right now. '40 - I really don't like the way Huntelaar criticizes his teammates sometimes. That's just not how you communicate with your teammates. I don't care how frustrated you are.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] He is a Dutch. They are even more blunt and honest than Germans. He also was in the right there. Schalke needs every goal it is time to play ít safe in such an attack.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] Yeah, he was in the right, but I don't think he handled the situation in the most positive way. 6-1 Unrelated thoughts: -Farfan changes this team -Hoger needs to make more/better surging runs forward when Farfan cuts inside -Draxler continues to dwell on the ball too much, but he's still the best option we have right now -Holtby has become an essential figure in the offense -Matip should continue playing defense
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] I am unable to watch the match guys, but you lot are certainly giving them a beating lol. Wanted to ask if Schalke are still playing the same formation 4-2-3-1 as the beginning of the season with Holtby playing a semi holding role or has Holtby gone back to his preferred positions on the wing or AM?
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] Final: 6-1 Well, it was a great result. The team is really playing well. Holtby played holding hid today. He looked good there, along side Papadopoulos. Full Lineup Here
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] Yes, I agree with all points including Huntelaars gestures. This looks to be the most exciting team since 2001 with Möller, Böhme, Sand, Mpenza and Asamoah. The defense still looks far too vulnerable on counter attacks. Yeah, Holtby continues to play as the offensive part of the dmid duo. He is quite growing into this role.
Re: You Rang(nick)? An FC Schalke 04 2011/12 Thread! [R] Congrats on impressively avoiding the disgrace after the surprising 0:2 first-leg defeat. Hopefully (for me) our defence will be better on Sunday than that of the Finns tonight ... and your defence as bad as it has been during the first 30 minutes. )