Domenico Tedesco: I feel right at home at Schalke

Domenico, what were your main reasons for signing the contract extension?

First of all it is a huge sign of trust that the club has shown in me, something they’ve been doing ever since I came here. It is never a certainty that a 31-year-old coach is given a chance in the Bundesliga. I have always said that I feel right at home at Schalke, everything just fits together; the team, the backroom staff, the board and the fans. I can wholeheartedly say that Schalke 04 is a part of me. When the club approached me with the offer to extend my contract I didn’t hesitate in accepting, it’s an absolute honour.

What areas will you and Christian Heidel look to work on in the coming years?

Schalke 04 has many exciting projects that are a crucial part of the club such as the scouting network and the focus on the academy. Both are areas that I want to drive forward. But obviously the development of the first-team is the priority and even though we already have a good squad, things can always be refined. We also have to accept that departures and setbacks are part and parcel of the process. When we are successful and play well, other clubs come looking at our players and it is always a possibility that these players will want to move on, like the situation with Leon Goretzka. We want to be able to alleviate this in the future and improve ourselves as a result.

What kind of football do you want your players playing?

I have previously tried to sum it up and I would say that flexibility is the most important factor for success. We want to be able to mix it up – passing the ball short, playing more direct, using the width of the pitch as well as being able to play through the middle so that we are not restricted to playing in just one way, but instead have several successful playing styles. In my opinion, working on flexibility is the most challenging task but also crucial for our further development, only then can we be a truly unpredictable opponent.