Late penalty seals 1-0 win for Schalke in Dresden

Højlund starts up front

Head coach Miron Muslic made three changes to the side that beat VfL Bochum 2-1 at home. Emil Højlund replaced the absent Moussa Sylla in attack, while Finn Porath and Janik Bachmann came into the XI in place of Christopher Antwi-Adjei and Adrian Gantenbein, who both began on the bench.

Lively opening, but no goals

The opening minutes showed that both sides were fully alert and determined to bring plenty of intensity. Barely a minute had been played when Loris Karius was called into action: Dresden switched the play out to the right, the cross found Christoph Daferner, who aimed for the near post but was denied by the Schalke keeper – although the offside made his fine save redundant (2’). Seconds later, Finn Porath was booked very early for a foul in the Dynamo half (3’).

Dresden pressed immediately with long balls into Schalke’s half, though these attacks often ended with the referee’s whistle. Timo Becker cleared a through ball into the area (10’), and Karius saved again from Daferner (11’) – both times the assistant flagged for offside. Schalke then began to get forward more themselves. After a corner, Dynamo goalkeeper Tim Schreiber punched clear to Vitalie Becker, who struck wide of the far post (14’). A minute later, Schreiber safely gathered Nikola Katic’s header from a free kick into the box (15’).

The Royal Blues increasingly put pressure on the ball and repeatedly forced the hosts into mistakes. Porath tried his luck from 20 yards but missed the target (18’). Soon after, Karaman won a free kick in a promising area after a turnover. Vitalie Becker went for goal directly, forcing Schreiber into a low save to his left and out for a corner (28’).

After Schalke’s attacking spell, Dresden sought relief and created one of their best chances of the first half. Kofi Amoako whipped a sharp ball across the six-yard box from the right, where Daferner was waiting at the near post – once again, Karius denied him from close range (36’). That proved the hosts’ only real opportunity before the break. At the other end, Karaman missed the target from just outside the box after Højlund had laid off a pass from Vitalie Becker on the left (39’).

Dresden goal disallowed, Karaman keeps his cool

Muslic made two changes at the break. Felipe Sanchez came on for Hasan Kuruçay in central defence, while Antwi-Adjei replaced Højlund. Schalke pressed again in the opening minutes after the restart, particularly through Porath on the right and Antwi-Adjei, who launched several long throws into the Dresden box. One of these found Porath, whose shot was deflected behind for a corner (51’).

Schalke increasingly looked for long deliveries into the danger area, but Dynamo repeatedly managed to clear. The hosts tried to respond with quick counters to relieve the pressure. Jakob Lemmer broke through on the right but was blocked by Timo Becker, with the flag going up for offside again (58’). Soufiane El-Faouzi was then booked for a foul (66’) before making way soon after, along with Porath. Adrian Gantenbein and Bryan Lasme came on for the final 20 minutes.

Most of Schalke’s play continued to flow down the right, with Antwi-Adjei sending in crosses and long throws, but without success. The best chance up to that point came when Dynamo keeper Schreiber misplaced a pass straight to Gantenbein, who laid it off for Bachmann. The midfielder thundered a shot on goal from 18 yards, forcing Schreiber into a strong two-handed save (74’). Moments later Sanchez was booked (75’), before the home fans thought they had the breakthrough. Stefan Kutschke headed in a Lemmer cross, but the provider had strayed offside and the goal was disallowed (77’).

While Dresden tried to use that moment as motivation for the closing stages, Schalke remained on the front foot and eventually forced the game’s decisive moment. Karaman drove into the box and was clipped on the calf by Amoako. Referee Robert Hartmann initially waved play on, but after checking the monitor he awarded Schalke a penalty. The captain stepped up himself and coolly placed the spot-kick into the bottom-left corner to make it 1-0 (84’). Dresden threw everything forward in the remaining moments, including five minutes of stoppage time, but Schalke stayed solid at the back and allowed no clear chances, as Muslic’s side secured their third win in four league matches.

Foals and Storks next up

With the league pausing for the international break, Schalke will play a friendly away at Borussia Mönchengladbach on Friday (05/09) at 15:00 CEST. The following weekend, the Royal Blues return to 2. Bundesliga action at home to Holstein Kiel on Saturday (13/09) at 13:00 CEST.