week 20 - match report

Royal Blues lose 2-1 in Bochum

When Christian Pander's sweetly curled free-kick came back off the right-hand upright in the 89th minute, it was clear to everyone that Schalke were going to come away from Bochum empty-handed. This, despite Kevin Kuranyi giving the Royal Blues an early lead.

Fred Rutten announced his attacking intent before the game when, in addition to slotting Orlando Engelaar into defensive midfield for the suspended Jermaine Jones, he opted to field four strikers, though Halil Altintop was asked to play alongside Ivan Rakitic behind a front three of Farfan, Kuranyi and Asamoah. It was a strategy that Bochum's rejigged central defence struggled to contend with in the opening stages. The Royal Blues also began with a stand-in rearguard, however, with Benedikt Höwedes sidelined by flu and Marcelo Bordon ruled out with a broken hand. Mladen Krstajic and Heiko Westermann thus formed the central defensive pairing, and initially they gelled better than their Bochum counterparts did.

Kuranyi was the one to benefit from the confusion. After a fine one-two involving Altintop and Farfan, Bochum keeper Daniel Fernandes could only parry Altintop's shot from just outside the box. Kuranyi reacted the quickest and slotted home the rebound to give his side a 19th minute lead. And it was no less than they deserved after controlling the opening stages. After going ahead the Royal Blues elected to sit back and let Bochum come, but they were unable to take any of their chances on the counter. "When you're still ahead two or three minutes before the break, you have to see it through to half-time", said Rutten afterwards. Former Schalke midfielder Mimoun Azaouagh was having none of it, however, and rifled a shot into the top right-hand corner from 20 metres on 44.

Psychologically, it was the worst possible time to concede the equaliser. Neither side was content with the draw, however, and both pressed forward at the beginning of the second half. But Rutten did not like what he saw. "Then they go and score a really good goal to make it 2-1", he said. Christoph Dabrowski it was who capped a 57th minute counterattack to give the home side the advantage. "In the run-up to the goal we should have been more workmanlike and read the situation better", criticised the Dutchman, who made several switches in a bid to increase the pressure.

The outcome remained the same, however. Pander's magnificent free-kick was not enough to ward off the defeat, and neither was the gilt-edged chance for fellow substitute Vicente Sanchez in time added on. "If you don't take chances like that one, you're going to lose", a vexed Rutten said. In contrast, Bochum coach Marcel Koller was proud of a performance that saw his team relieve the pressure somewhat in the battle against relegation. He said: "Schalke had more possession, we had some good opportunities. It was a crucial battle for us, but going into the game I had tried to prime my players for this battle, and especially for one-on-one situations."

Bochum: Fernandes - Schröder, Pfertzel, Mavraj, Fuchs - Imhof - Azaouagh (Grote 73'), Dabrowski - Epalle - Klimowicz, Sestak (90'+3 Fabian)
Schalke: Neuer - Rafinha, Westermann, Krstajic, Kobiashvili (Latza 82') - Engelaar - Altintop, Rakitic (Pander 71') - Farfan, Asamoah (Sanchez 70'), Kuranyi
Goals: 0-1 Kuranyi (18'), 1-1 Azaouagh (44'), 2-1 Dabrowski (57')
Attendance: 30,605
Referee: Knut Kircher (Rottenburg)
Yellow cards: Sestak (5), Epalle, Mavraj (3), Fuchs (3) - Rafinha (5/2), Altintop