Thomas Reis: Defend better and be brave in attack

“We signed Timo to strengthen our defence and provide it with more stability. He has already shown in training that he can help the team,” said Reis ahead of Saturday’s matchday 2 clash. The coach wants the whole team to defend better after suffering a 5-3 defeat on the opening night in Hamburg. “We didn’t defend well as a team and allowed them far too many chances. We definitely want to show that we have learnt something from that loss,” stressed Reis. With the exception of the suspended Ibrahima Cissé, Ralf Fährmann (light training after calf injury) and Leo Greiml (ACL injury), Reis has a full squad to choose from.

Kabadayi will not be in the squad

Reis will not be handing a debut to attacker Yusuf Kabadayi, who arrived on loan from FC Bayern’s reserves on Thursday (3/8). “He trained today, but Saturday will definitely come too soon for him,” reported the boss, who revealed that the club first got in contact with the Germany youth international a few months ago. “He was interested right away and told us several times that he would love to play for Schalke 04. We have made it clear that we want to increase the market value of our squad. We decided to bring Yusuf in because we strongly believe that we can help further aid his development.”

Reis is excited for Saturday’s clash, one that will see him come up against a former teammate in FCK head coach Dirk Schuster. The pair played together for Waldhof Mannheim back in the 2005/06 season. “Dirk’s teams are always really well set up,” praised Reis. “They always get stuck in, are physical and dangerous from counter-attacks. They are also strong from set pieces, so we need to be on our toes from dead balls.”

S04 will be hoping to get off the mark against FCK after a defeat to start the new campaign. When asked if his team is under pressure, Reis responded: “You are always under pressure if you play for Schalke 04, but it’s a positive kind of pressure.” He expects an improvement when it comes to defending, as well as some brave attacking play. “If we manage that, I’m confident it will be a great game.”