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Kees van Wonderen: Take this energy with us to Paderborn
FC Schalke 04 will travel to face current league leaders SC Paderborn 07 on Friday (6/12, 18:30 CET). The hosts have established a four-point lead over second place. "We know that it won't be easy. But, we're ready to tackle this challenge with full motivation and are looking forward to facing the league leaders," Kees van Wonderen said ahead of the clash at the Home Deluxe Arena.
“Based on the current situation in the table, we’re certainly not the favourites. But, we believe that we will be able to take points back home to Gelsenkirchen with us,” said the Schalke head coach, who saw a three-game undefeated run come to an end last weekend. According to van Wonderen, the 3-0 loss to 1. FC Kaiserslautern was frustrating for the entire team.
Based on the current situation in the table, we're certainly not the favourites. But, we believe that we will be able to take points back home to Gelsenkirchen with us.
“Following a strong showing in the second half at Hamburger SV, we had the feeling that we were on the right path. Now, we are all responsible for ensuring that we do better this weekend,” said van Wonderen. “We want to demonstrate what we’re capable of in Paderborn.” The Royal Blues have thoroughly analysed last weekend’s loss to the Red Devils, while the focus in training this week has been solely on preparing for their upcoming match. “The energy on the training pitch was good and we now want to take it with us to Paderborn,” he explained.
Paderborn have lost just once so far this season (3-0 against 1. FC Kaiserslautern). “We’re up against a well-structured side. Our opponents are the hardest-running side in the division and have won a couple games already this season that they might not have been expected to,” said van Wonderen. These qualities are part of the reason why Lukas Kwasniok’s side are deservedly top of the table.
Højlund and Antwi-Adjei back in team training
The Schalke head coach has a clear plan in mind for how he wants his team to perform against the league leaders. One option he is considering involves Paul Seguin. The midfielder was only able to partially train against the Kaiserslautern game and was therefore unable to make the starting lineup, but has done well in training this week. “When he’s fully fit, Paul is able to benefit any team,” said van Wonderen.
The 55-year-old hasn’t finalised his starting XI yet, as he is waiting for the team’s final training session. He will, however, have a couple of players back available again. Emil Højlund and Christopher Antwi-Adjei have both recovered from injury and are back in team training. Tobias Mohr is also making good progress towards his comeback, but the Paderborn game will come too soon for him, as he is still recovering from a thigh injury.
