Schalke 04 drew 0-0 in Mönchengladbach and sent a small sign of life, but the series of horrors away from home continued.
After the next zero number with a small glimmer of hope, the Schalke 04 players gathered around goalkeeper Ralf Fährmann. Then it was off to the fans in the guest corner, who celebrated winning the point and the long-awaited victory. “It was a good game for us, but we didn’t reward ourselves again,” said Fährmann after the 0-0 win at Borussia Mönchengladbach on Sky, “we’re running out of time.”
The bottom of the Bundesliga again sent a small sign of life in the relegation battle, even if the series of horrors never ends: The Royal Blues have been waiting for a win for 37 away games in the first division.
A week after the goalless draw against 1. FC Köln, the Gelsenkirchen team were particularly convincing in their fighting spirit, and the return of veteran ferryman into the goal again paid off. Nevertheless, the gap to the saving place 15 is already eight points.
“Many games in the first half of the season were not Bundesliga worthy,” said Fährmann. “It’s important to see a development, that gives us hope.” Borussia disappointed for long stretches and once again missed the chance to land two wins in a row for the first time this season.
Meanwhile, Gladbach’s Christoph Kramer found clear words: “We did well in the first half, the second half sucked. We got involved in a game that we can’t play. The field between the central defenders was too big, there we have we lack our structure, let ourselves be infected by the hustle and played a lot of long balls.”
Schalke 04 and Gladbach taste victory
Schalke should “work on” Gladbach and “not let it come into play”, S04 coach Thomas Reis had demanded before the game. His team initially appeared correspondingly poisonous. Schalke gave Gladbach the ball, but was on the defensive with the beefy newcomer Eder Balanta, who made his debut for the miners on the six, but safely.
The result was a hard-fought but extremely tough game. The 54,042 spectators in the sold-out Borussia Park warmed up to small highlights – such as the accidental overhead kick by Schalke’s Soichiro Kozuki (18th) or a solo by Gladbach’s Ko Itakura (27th) over half the pitch. The Japanese’s unfortunate conclusion against his former club was significant.
Only Gladbach’s Manu Kone provided creative elements. Shortly before the break things got wild when Borussia had a triple chance: first Moritz Jens saved at the last second against striker Marcus Thuram (43rd), then the ferryman, who had returned to the goal for Alexander Schwolow, made a brilliant save against Itakura. Maya Yoshida headed Christoph Kramer’s follow-up shot to a corner (44′).
After the change of sides, Schalke suddenly got the upper hand. After a corner, a header from Tom Krauss just missed the goal (49′), a little later Simon Terodde, who had been pale until then, failed to find goalkeeper Jonas Omlin (52′). As a result, things got more and more hectic on the pitch, with both teams sniffing the win that Gladbach captain Lars Stindl was on the verge of (73′).
Gladbach – Schalke 04: The votes
Daniel Farke (Borussia Monchengladbach coach): “We’re not happy, that’s obvious. Of course we wanted to win. You have to pull a game like that over to your side in the first few minutes, we didn’t manage that. Then it was a tough game. The positive thing is that we at least kept a clean sheet on a dirty football day.”
Thomas Reis (Schalke 04 coach): “Unfortunately, the team didn’t reward themselves. We have to be satisfied, the way we do it makes me feel positive. I still have hope. When the team performs like this, you must and will reward yourself. That’s the way we perform want.”
