Miron Muslic: No reason to play with any fear

Muslic shares the opinion of many of his coaching colleagues in the league when it comes to Friday’s opponents: “Hannover are a top side and clear promotion contenders, packed with individual quality and a well-defined playing style that Christian Titz has implemented quickly.” That style, he explains, is characterised as follows: “They’re dominant in possession, with clear patterns that take them into the final third. The squad has been strengthened to fit the coach’s philosophy, and his style of play has been clear to see in their performances.”

After eight matchdays, Hannover’s numbers back that up. With five wins and two 2-2 draws against Dynamo Dresden and SpVgg Greuther Fürth, their only defeat so far came at home to Hertha BSC (3-0). Hannover also boast the league’s highest possession rate and one of the most advanced pressing lines. “Their goalkeeper plays almost like a quarterback, which makes them so dominant in possession because they know how to use their numerical advantage,” said Muslic. “But we’ve already shown that we can adapt and respond with flexibility.”

In general, the Schalke coach is looking forward to the challenge that awaits his team in the capital of the state of Lower Saxony. With six wins from eight games, the Royal Blues currently sit second in the table, having recorded three straight competitive victories against 1. FC Magdeburg (2-0), SpVgg Greuther Fürth (1-0) and Arminia Bielefeld (2-1). “We’re confident enough to take on the challenge and play our game. If we perform at our best, we have no reason to play with any fear,” stated Muslic.

Flexibility in the squad

During the international break, the Schalke head coach used the friendly away to Irish top-flight side Bohemian FC (3-2 loss) to take a closer look at several young players from the U23s and U19s. “In order to manage their workload, we decided to use the trip to rest the spine of our team, and the young lads made a really good impression,” commented the 43-year-old. Janik Bachmann also caught the eye with two goals. “His attributes give us even more flexibility. He’s a player who can help us in several positions and it makes us a bit more unpredictable that we currently have so many players capable of creating danger and scoring goals.”

Muslic will again have several options to choose from for the trip to Hannover. The trio on international duty returned in time, with Vitalie Becker the last to rejoin the squad on Wednesday morning (15/10). Meanwhile, Max Grüger was back in full training at the start of the week after recovering from a broken toe sustained in September. “The excitement is huge,” exclaimed the coach, also looking forward to the large travelling support that will once again be behind Schalke in Hannover.