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0-0 in Münster as S04 are held to their first draw of the season
FC Schalke 04 played out a 0-0 draw away at SC Preußen Münster on Saturday (22/11). The Royal Blues found themselves a man up after the hosts were shown a red card in the 55th minute, but couldn’t make the most of their advantage. Instead, Schalke picked up their first draw of the season after having won nine and lost three of their previous matches.
One change to the starting line-up
Adrian Gantenbein returned to the starting XI after serving a yellow-card suspension last time out. Teammate Vitalie Becker missed the match after picking up his fifth yellow of the season against SV Elversberg on the last matchday. Finn Porath, who had featured on the right flank against SVE, started on the left wing this weekend as the Royal Blues lined up in their usual 3-4-2-1 formation.
Back-and-forth opening half
It took just two minutes for the ball to hit the back of the net for the first time. Schalke’s goal was quickly disallowed, however, as referee Florian Lechner seemed to spot a foul from Mika Wallentowitz against Münster goalkeeper Johannes Schenk following a corner from Porath. VAR did not review the incident, allowing the call to stand. Shortly after, Porath sent Moussa Sylla through on goal with a precise pass, but the striker’s well-timed effort was parried by Schenk (6’). Nikola Katic was able to get a shot off on the turn on the resulting corner kick, but didn’t connect fully with the ball, resulting in an easy gather for Schenk.
Three minutes later, Oscar Vilhelmsson popped up in front of Loris Karius, but couldn’t get the better of the S04 goalkeeper. Vilhelmsson was then involved again a minute later, as he was able to turn the ball in at the far post following a cross from Oliver Batista Meier. The hosts’ celebrations were soon cut short, however, as the goal was chalked off by VAR due to Batista Meier being offside. Karius was then called upon to block a shot from Jorrit Hendrix from close range.
The Royal Blues then went close again, as Ron Schallenberg picked out Sylla with a pass. The striker was able to get a shot off from the edge of the box, but had to watch as it sailed over the bar (23’). Karius was fouled twice while making saves in the minutes that followed, with the shot-stopper able to continue after receiving treatment each time.
The pace of the game then dropped around the 30-minute mark, with the majority of the play taking place in midfield. Vilhelmsson then threatened again, heading a cross just past the post (38’). Just 60 seconds later, Mikkel Kirkeskov’s header rebounded off the crossbar and back into play, where Yassine Bouchama was able to get to it. His shot was parried by Karius, ensuring the scoreline remained level at 0-0 heading into the half-time break.
Münster reduced to 10 men in the 55th minute
The hosts came out of the break strong, with Paul Jaeckel able to get a head to a cross inside the box, but without putting enough power on it to truly test Karius (48’).
Shortly after, Schenk was sent off after bringing down Sylla well outside of his penalty box, with the referee deeming it a professional foul from the goalkeeper. Back-up shot-stopper Morten Behrens came on in his stead, with striker Vilhelmsson being taken off for tactical reasons. Münster head coach Alexander Ende made further changes moments later, bringing on three new players and switching to a 5-3-1. S04 head coach Miron Muslic also made a change, with Janik Bachmann coming in for Mertcan Ayhan to make his comeback from a heel injury.
The 75th minute saw Behrens deny Kenan Karaman a certain goal, making a diving save to push a header from the Schalke captain past the far post. Shortly after, Max Grüger and Christopher Antwi-Adjei were both subbed on, with the latter also making his comeback from a calf problem that had kept him sidelined for several weeks. Muslic then brought on Ayman Gulasi in the closing minutes, giving the 19-year-old his Bundesliga 2 debut.
Despite finding themselves a man up for much of the second half, the Royal Blues struggled to break down a compact Münster backline. Bachmann was able to get a head to a cross from Porath in the 86th minute, but his attempt went over the bar. As the match headed into eight minutes of added time, Sylla was able to record another big chance. The Schalke striker saw his effort saved by Behrens (90’+5), who was able to ensure that the points would be shared in a 0-0 draw.
Top-of-the-table clash against Paderborn
Next up, Schalke will take on SC Paderborn 07 on Friday (28/11, 18:30 CET) at the VELTINS-Arena. The Royal Blues will head into the match in second place, just a point behind league-leaders SCP.
