Schalke is concerned about Justin Heekeren. The goalkeeper had to be substituted early in the 3-0 win in Ahlen. The Schalke goalkeeper left the pitch with his head down after just 30 minutes of the 3-0 friendly in Ahlen and had to be substituted.

He had previously grabbed his right thigh and had to receive treatment on the ground in the penalty area for several minutes. Schalke’s number two tried to continue, but he was unable to play on. He was replaced by Johannes Siebeking. Will Heekeren be out for longer and possibly miss the start of the season against Hertha BSC in two weeks? “We’ll have to wait and see. We’ll have the MRI results on Monday. It looks like a muscle problem,” said Schalke coach Miron Muslic after the game in Ahlen.

In addition to Heekeren, Tidiane Toure was also injured and had to be substituted. The injury would be another setback for Heekeren. At the beginning of his tenure, Muslic had already decided that Loris Karius would start the season as the first-choice goalkeeper.

The former Liverpool player played the first 45 minutes of the season on Saturday in a 0-0 draw against Twente Enschede after recovering from injury. He then indicated that he expects to be fit to play by the start of the season.

Heekeren had announced that he would remain at his beloved club Schalke 04 despite the clear vote in favor of Karius and that he would put pressure on Karius. If the 24-year-old is now out for a longer period, this could mean an opportunity for Siebeking to overtake his former Oberhausen teammate. The 19-year-old has made tremendous progress and has also made a predominantly good impression in his first professional appearances. His U19 coach Norbert Elgert is convinced that Siebeking has what it takes to be a professional goalkeeper. Will his prediction now come true sooner than expected? That will probably depend on the severity of Justin Heekeren’s injury.