FC Schalke 04 remains last in the Bundesliga. The new S04 coach Thomas Reis lost 0:2 (0:1) against SC Freiburg.

Thomas Reis already admitted at his introduction that he would be taking on a difficult task. The new head coach of FC Schalke 04 saw just how difficult it would be in the home match against SC Freiburg. Although the Königsblauen showed great fighting spirit, they deservedly lost 0:2 (0:1) thanks to two goals by Vincenzo Grifo. They were even well served with this result.

The new coach Reis entered the arena three minutes before kick-off – because he wanted to witness the fans’ impressive choreography and to soak up the atmosphere as coach of the home team. He had lost his last match with VfL Bochum six weeks ago on Schalke with 1:3.

Reis immediately caused a surprise: goal scorer Simon Terodde was on the bench, something unthinkable under predecessor Frank Kramer. In the centre of attack, he trusted Sebastian Polter – mainly because both had worked well together in Bochum. Kenan Karaman, who arrived from Besiktas Istanbul at the end of August, made his starting debut on the right side of midfield. Alexander Schwolow remained in goal, even though he had often fluffed recently.

The first half was a tired affair. The Schalkers – that was Reis’ first focus in the three training sessions after he took office – concentrated solely on closing all gaps in the defence and winning as many duels as possible. Freiburg, who were still playing in the Europa League on Thursday evening, looked lethargic, patiently passing the ball around but rarely developing any scoring threat.

There were only two chances worth mentioning in the first 45 minutes – Freiburg’s Ritsu Doan pushed the ball into Schwolow’s arms from a good position (25th), Schalke’s Kerim Calhanoglu shot over (35th). All 61,115 spectators had prepared for a boring 0:0 at the break, when Freiburg successfully combined through Schalke’s half for the first time in the first minute of injury time. Grifo was completely free in the penalty area and flicked the ball into the corner, Schwolow was powerless. For the first time, Reis experienced the feeling of being behind, which had been common for the fans for weeks.

This intermediate result influenced the course of the game considerably. The Freiburgers came out of the dressing room lively and eager to play, the Schalkers looked shocked. The guests quickly created great chances. In the 51st minute Wooyeong Jeong was all alone in front of the empty goal but missed (51st), three minutes later Lukas Kübler shot at Schalke’s Henning Matriciani – that was more difficult than scoring a goal.

Then, in the 62nd minute, the overdue 0:2 came. Calhanoglu had impetuously hit Jeong on the foot in the penalty area, and after viewing the video images, referee Christian Dingert decided on a penalty. Grifo stepped up and scored – and the game was decided.

The Freiburg team was now conserving its energy, coach Christian Streich was gradually replacing his key players. The Schalkers now played more purposefully forward, but they lacked quality and self-confidence in all areas of the offensive game. The standard situations were a horror, the counter-attack attempts almost always ended with wrong passes, and the pressing approaches did not work either. Only Tom Krauß (77th) and Tobias Mohr (82nd) had chances.

For the most part, however, the game was a tired ripple until the final whistle. 20 good minutes were enough for Freiburg, Schalke lost their seventh match in a row and scored only four goals. The Königsblauen remain last. Despite the change of coach.