week 8 - match report

"Moment of brilliance" seals 1-0 win over Hertha

It was Schalke's third Bundesliga game in six days, straight off the back of the Champions League opener against Valencia: "Today was the first time we tired a little in the second half", said Schalke head coach Mirko Slomka after the clash with Hertha BSC Berlin, "but we still held our own very well". The reward: a well-earned 1-0 win to make it nine points out of nine at the end of a very busy week.

After the away win in Duisburg Schalke began with an unchanged side but they were forced to make a change after just nine minutes when Halil Altintop limped off injured. But the loss of the Turkey forward did nothing to dampen their initial impetus. "Schalke were very good in the first half. They played with a lot of pressure, power and commitment", conceded Hertha coach Lucien Favre. "We played the kind of dynamic, effective and aggressive football that has secured us the points in recent weeks", acknowledged Slomka. "But after around half an hour we were winning far fewer balls and therefore lost some of our control." This led Favre to believe his team could go in at half time with the score goalless.

But his hopes were dashed by what he called a "lapse in concentration", though Slomka preferred to term it a "moment of brilliance so typical of Neuer and Jones". The Schalke keeper upped the tempo with a long throw upfield, while "Jones burst into the penalty area at pace" as the 40-year-old put it. There he was up-ended in classic fashion by Steve von Bergen's late tackle, and Rafinha stepped to convert the resulting penalty with aplomb to give his side a 1-0 half-time lead (43').

The visitors had their one and only genuine chance of the game immediately after the restart through a Chahed header. For their part the Royal Blues could have put the game to bed with excellent chances for Westermann (61'), Lovenkrands (63') and Kuranyi (75'). But that was not the only reason things remained exciting right up to the end. "We came under serious pressure in the second half because Hertha brought a lot of quick players into the game", said Slomka.

Schalke's task was made even more difficult when Kobiashvili sustained an injury shortly after coming on and saw out the last five minutes as a passenger because the Royal Blues had already used up all their substitutions. Bajramovic was forced to fill the gap at left-back against the pacy Patrick Ebert. "Things got a bit hectic as we had to change everything round", explained Slomka. But the players and coaching team mastered this final challenge with show of great commitment. And ultimately they were able to celebrate their third win in a row, "a win that is very good for us", the Schalke boss concluded. "Let's hope it continues like this."

Schalke: Neuer - Rafinha, Westermann, Bordon, Pander (Kobiashvili 78') - Ernst - Jones, Bajramovic - Rakitic (Azaouagh 76') - Kuranyi, Altintop (Lovenkrands 9')
Hertha: Drobny - Chahed, Friedrich, von Bergen, Fathi - Schmidt, Mineiro - Grahn (Andre Lima 65'), Gilberto, Lucio (Ebert 65') - Pantelic (Okoronkwo 74')
Referee: Felix Brych (Munich)
Goal: 1:0 Rafinha (pen. 44')
Attendance: 60,511
Yellow cards: Westermann - Von Bergen, Mineiro