The Belgian Karel Geraerts will be the new coach of FC Schalke 04. The 41-year-old will receive a contract with the second division football club until June 30, 2025, as the Gelsenkirchen-based company announced on Monday. Geraerts, who signed the new contract on Sunday evening, was most recently employed by the Belgian surprise club Union Saint-Gilloise. Despite a successful season with third place, the club parted ways with him.
“Over the past two weeks, André Hechelmann and I have worked intensively to find the right trainer for the profile we were looking for. The process took place in close coordination with the sports committee and in particular Youri Mulder, who is very well connected, especially in the Netherlands and Belgium “, explained sports director Peter Knäbel: “After the first meeting, it was clear to us that Karel Geraerts meets exactly the criteria we want for a Schalke head coach.”
Schalke wants to play for promotion, but is currently only in 16th place
The new coach was officially introduced on Monday in a press conference with Knäbel and sports director Hechelmann. In Geraerts, Schalke is getting an internationally experienced coach. With Saint-Gilloise he beat 1. FC Union Berlin in the Europa League in the round of 16 last season and then failed in the quarter-finals against Bayer Leverkusen.
A completely different and difficult task awaits him at Schalke. “The conversations with Karel were very familiar from the first second. He was perfectly prepared and presented us with analyzes of how he looks for and finds footballing solutions. He has a clear approach to the game, his style is intense, targeted, efficient. With him “We found a coach who has a new game idea for our team and is eager to implement it together with the entire team,” said Hechelmann.
The Revierklub is currently running far behind its own standards. As a relegated team from the first division, the goal for the season is actually direct promotion. Instead of being in the top group, Schalke is in 16th place in the table. After only two wins in the first seven league games, the traditional club parted ways with coach Thomas Reis on September 27th.