MillenniumPost
Sports

Resurgent Schalke ready to see off Galatasaray

Resurgent Schalke 04 are out to continue their winning streak by beating Galatasaray to book their place in the Champions League’s quarterfinals in Tuesday’s last 16, second leg.

Holding a slight advantage with an away goal from the 1-1 first leg draw in Istanbul three weeks ago, Schalke have won all three games since including Saturday’s 2-1 Bundesliga win over Ruhr Valley rivals Borussia Dortmund.

The victory came at a cost with Holland striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar tearing knee ligaments having scored the winner against Dortmund and is out for the next few weeks.

Despite the loss of last season’s top-scorer in Germany, the derby win has boosted confidence and Schalke are bidding for another win at Gelsenkirchen’s Veltins Arena.

Coach Jens Keller is hoping the home supporters will play their part, even if there are sure to be several thousand Galatasaray fans in the crowd, given the Ruhr’s large Turkish community. ‘Beating the German champions doesn’t happen everyday and is encouraging for the tasks ahead,’ said Keller, whose side are fourth in the league having dipped to 10th in February.

‘It is impressive to hear how much the atmosphere has improved in the stadium - these are happy days for us.’ Captain Benedikt Hoewedes has said that having turned their fortunes around with wins over Wolfsburg, Fortuna Duesseldorf and now Dortmund, Schalke must keep the run going.

‘We mustn’t ease up, everyone needs to keep working hard on the pitch and keep playing.’    
Next Story
Share it