week 26 - match preview

Schalke visit Karlsruhe: Slomka targets repeat of first-half performance in Berlin

The Royal Blues travel to Karlsruhe on Saturday for their second away fixture in succession following last week's 2-1 success at Hertha BSC Berlin. And Schalke boss Mirko Slomka, conscious of the home side's strengths, is hoping they will prove as effective as they were in the capital.

"We need to put our opponents under constant pressure and force them into mistakes like we did in the first half in Berlin", he told journalists at today's media conference, aware that goalscoring opportunities are likely to be rare at the Wildparkstadion. "So we'll have to be clinical when it comes to taking our chances." I expect my players to show the same kind of effectiveness they showed against Hertha." If they do, a fourth Bundesliga win in succession is within reach.

Despite his side's current good form Slomka is no longer targeting first place. "The way I see it Bayern Munich have already got the league title sewn up, but the battle for the places below them is in full swing and as exciting as it's been in a long time." So the Royal Blues cannot afford any slip-ups in the next few weeks, be it away to close rivals Werder Bremen (April 12) and SV Hamburg (April 26) or on Saturday against the side currently occupying ninth place in the table.

"Not for nothing are Karlsruhe considered the best promoted side in years", said Slomka, full of respect for the opponents. "They haven't been playing as well as they did earlier in the season, having won just one of their last seven, but that's irrelevant as far as I'm concerned. We can't afford to make the mistake of underestimating them."

Indeed, Ede Becker's side have lost just one of their last nine home games. "Karlsruhe get massive support from their fans. They create a really powerful atmosphere", said Slomka. "So it's up to us to impose our game on them."

The Schalke boss is particularly impressed by Karlsruhe's strength in the second half. "They always come out of the dressing room raring to go and have won quite a few games in the second 45", he explained. The reverse fixture at the VELTINS Arena, which the Bundesliga newcomers won 2-0 thanks to two late goals, is a prime example. "There must be no repetition of that on Saturday", concluded Slomka.