Gerald Asamoah and Mike Büskens sign contract extensions

“Asa and Buyo live for this club, they experience all the highs and lows of each game with every fiber of their being. With that in mind, they are the perfect role models for our players,” explained sporting director Rouven Schröder. “Aside from that, they are excellent at what they do and are genuine guys. We’re really pleased that we’ll continue to work with them for many more years.”

Inseparable from S04

Since joining Schalke 04 in 1999 from Hannover 96, Gerald Asamoah has been inseparable from the club. The former Germany international won two DFB-Pokal titles as a player, and has gone on to work for the club in different functions after his career ended. He became team manager of the U23s in 2016, overseeing their promotion back to the fourth tier, and has been first-team manager since February, while also working as a coordinator. He is currently responsible for coordinating things involving the first team and also works on process optimisation, reporting to the board member for sport and the board itself.

The 42-year-old said: “I’m pleased to have Peter Knäbel and Rouven Schröder’s confidence. I’ve always said how much FC Schalke 04, the fans and the staff mean to me. We’ve got big challenges ahead of us and we’ll need to use all the strength we have. I’ll continue to work hard so that we can enjoy better times here again.”

Lead the club to a more successful future

Mike Büskens has been a Royal Blue since 1992, initially playing 306 times in all competitions for S04 as a player. He was part of the legendary ‘Eurofighters’ that won the 1997 UEFA Cup final against Inter Milan, while, like Asamoah, he also won the DFB-Pokal twice. After ending his playing career, the 53-year-old has held several posts as a coach or assistant in the academy and in the first-team setup. Büskens was even interim coach for the first team in both 2008 and 2009. Since March, ‘Buyo’ has once again been an assistant coach for the first team.

“When I joined FC Schalke 04 from Düsseldorf 29 years ago, I could never have imagined that this journey together would last so long. It was one of the best decisions of my life in both a sporting and personal sense,” commented Büskens. “Both the emotional moments and the task we have of leading the club to a more successful future are driving me on massively, which is why I’m pleased to continue working in my current role. I really enjoy working with the lads.”