Goretzka and Burgstaller score in 2-0 win

Tedesco keeps same team

After a convincing 2-0 win against Hertha BSC last weekend, Domenico Tedesco made no changes to his starting XI.

Goretzka with the opener

Like against Hertha last weekend, Schalke started on the front foot and had the majority of possession. The dominance of play was soon reflected in the scoreline as Leon Goretzka fired Schalke into the lead after 13 minutes. The Germany international finished Guido Burgstaller’s delightful pass with aplomb by chipping Rene Adler in the Mainz goal.

After going 1-0 up, the Royal Blues continued to push on in search of a second goal. The best chance in the remainder of the first half for the Royal Blues came to Amine Harit whose wicked strike from the edge of the penalty area fizzed past the post.

Burgstaller makes it 2-0

Mainz started the second half more brightly and Yoshinori Muto had a chance to equalise soon after the game resumed but was denied by Ralf Fährmann. Minutes later, at the other end, Rene Adler was called into action to deny Franco di Santo. Guido Burgstaller came close soon after and was inches away from tapping home an Oczipka cross. Eventually, Guido’s hard work paid off. In the 74th minute, Guido was the first to react and fire home in a goalmouth scramble following Adler’s initial parry of Naldo’s header.

The Austrian international’s goal essentially wrapped up the game in Schalke’s favour. The visitors tried to get past Ralf Fährmann but failed to create sufficient clear cut chances to do so. The best chance to reduce the deficit fell to Kenan Kodro who missed a header from close range. Towards the end of the game, Schalke held most of the possession and sought a third goal but didn’t quite manage to further increase their advantage.

Midweek games to come

On Tuesday, Schalke will have to be ready to put in another big performance at SV Wehen Wiesbaden. The DFB-Pokal fixture kicks off at 18:30 CEST. Following on from that game, VfL Wolfsburg await in Schalke’s next Bundesliga fixture at 15:30 CEST next Saturday in the Veltins Arena.