Schalke lost the friendly match against Borussia Mönchengladbach 0-2. Three Knappenschmiede talents were fielded.

Miron Muslic was in a hurry after the game: the FC Schalke 04 coach also had a long weekend off after the friendly match against Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach.

“I’m going home now,” said Muslic. “On Tuesday, the whole circus continues.” Home for the coach means Upper Austria, where his family lives in the Salzkammergut region. Before setting off on his journey, Muslic spoke briefly about the 0-2 (0-1) defeat in the test match. “Basically, I’m very satisfied with the test match. We created seven or eight top-class chances, but didn’t take any of them,” said Muslic. Schalke could have taken a 2-0 lead after just five minutes through Kenan Karaman, but the captain missed two chances. Gladbach did much better, with Luca Netz (6th minute) and Franck Honorat (51st minute) scoring the goals that secured victory in front of 1,700 spectators.

With twelve professionals missing for various reasons, Muslic also tested some talented youngsters. Paul Pöpperl (U23) and Mika Wallentowitz and Luca Vozar (both U19) were given around half an hour of playing time. Pöpperl is under contract as a professional, but was sent to the regional league team before the start of preseason training. There, he has impressed with good performances, and the reward: a promotion to the professional team. Wallentowitz and Vozar are protégés of U19 coach Norbert Elgert.

Schalke coach Muslic praises the Knappenschmiede trio

In the 80th minute, all three took center stage: Pöpperl sent Wallentowitz down the right wing. After a one-two with Vozar in the penalty area, the angle was a little too acute, however, and Wallentowitz’s shot went wide of the Gladbach goal.

But it was also because of scenes like this that Muslic raved about the trio, saying: “I was thrilled with the three guys who came on. That’s how I imagine Schalke to be: aggressive, intense, courageous, young, cheeky. I’d love to see more of that.”