2nd league
Stevens on possible Schalke relegation: “Ruins the club”
Former Schalke coach Huub Stevens classifies the club’s current crisis. photo
© Guido Kirchner/dpa
Schalke’s coach of the century sounds the alarm after the 3-0 defeat at KSC, but also criticizes the power of the Ultras. Against Hanover he wants to support the second division soccer team, which is threatened with relegation.
“You have to point that out to everyone and everyone has to fight to prevent that from happening. It can’t be the case that Schalke is playing in the third division,” complained the soon-to-be 70-year-old. After the disastrous 0:3 at Karlsruher SC, when coach Karel Geraerts made his debut, the Bundesliga relegated team is in 16th place. Five points are already missing from 15th place.
“You don’t always have to blame the coach. You also have to blame the players sometimes. I believe that the players need to be woken up,” demanded Stevens, who won the UEFA Cup with Schalke in 1997 and the 2001 and 2002 Brought the DFB Cup to Gelsenkirchen. About the signing of Geraerts, whose work he could not evaluate, Stevens said: “I don’t know whether this coach is the right man. So far it’s not paying off.”
“With all respect for Karlsruhe, (…) that doesn’t work”
Stevens found Schalke’s lack of energy at KSC unacceptable, as well as their poor mileage. “You can lose a game or two, but you can’t be played away by a team like KSC. With all respect to Karlsruhe, but that shouldn’t be the case, it won’t work.”
Stevens can understand why the Royal Blues fans even refused to support the team on Sunday. “They go to every game and have to look at the misery,” he said, but also remarked: “I just don’t think it’s good that the Ultras have so much power at the moment. That’s not so good. That’s why there should be another one “People like Rudi Assauer used to take care of them. And take people by the hand and show them the direction in which things are going.”
Stevens wants to watch the upcoming home game on Saturday against fourth-placed Hannover 96 (1 p.m./Sky) in the stadium, “maybe I can give some support.” In any case, Stevens has hope for a turnaround. In his opinion, the team also has “the quality to be at the top.”