S04 striker Moussa Sylla watched a match between English Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers at the stadium on Monday evening. Sports director Frank Baumann explains.
It’s nothing new that photos of professional soccer players on social media can spark heated discussions. That was also the case at FC Schalke 04 on Tuesday. Forward Moussa Sylla, who almost left the club in the summer, posted a picture from the Wolverhampton Wanderers stadium, who lost 4-1 to Manchester United in the Premier League on Monday evening.
What was Sylla doing in Wolverhampton? Is a transfer in the works? Was this agreed with the club?
The background: Schalke coach Miron Muslic gave his team three days off after the Topgolf St. Nicholas celebration on Saturday in Oberhausen. The pros will not meet again until Wednesday morning (10:45 a.m.). How the players spend their free time is up to them. When a similarly long break is granted during international breaks, players have sometimes flown south to soak up some sun.
Wolverhampton is located 20 kilometers from the city of Birmingham in the midwest of England – the city can be reached from Düsseldorf in about an hour and a half by plane. The “Wolves” are the number one relegation candidates in the Premier League, having earned only two points as the bottom team and already 13 points behind safety.
Schalke faces 1. FC Nürnberg on Sunday
Is Sylla a panic buy? There is no indication that this is the case. According to Schalke sources, Sylla was out on his day off for personal reasons. And sporting director Frank Baumann also took a relaxed view. On the sidelines of the presentation of the special jersey, Baumann said: “It’s perfectly normal for soccer players to watch other clubs’ games. That’s why I’m extremely relaxed and it’s fine.”
On Sunday, Sylla will play his last game for Schalke for the time being against 1. FC Nürnberg (1:30 p.m./Sky) – after that, he will travel with Mali to the Africa Cup of Nations. Sylla will miss the match in Braunschweig (December 21) if Mali reaches the final, as well as the start of the second half of the season in Berlin (January 17, 2026). There are currently no indications that Sylla will be transferred. “We assume that he will play many more games for us after the winter,” said Baumann.