Promoted Schalke 04 did not get beyond a draw in their first endurance test before the new Bundesliga season.
The Royal Blues drew 0-0 with ex-Bayern player Franck Ribéry from Italian first division side US Salernitana at the training camp in Austria on Wednesday. There was more going on off the field on Wednesday: Schalke presented their new main sponsor in the afternoon, and new signing Alex Kral was already approaching.
Four days after the weak performance in the Park Stadium, when coach Frank Kramer’s team lost to third division team SV Meppen (1:3), the newly promoted team was very stable defensively, but was again too harmless on offense.
Kral, midfielder from Spartak Moscow, completed the medical check in Gelsenkirchen on Wednesday and then went straight to the training camp. The 24-year-old is set to be loaned out for a season, and with a market value of around seven million euros, the Czech international is the Royal Blues’ most valuable new signing this summer. The official announcement of the club is still pending.
On Wednesday, the Revierklub presented the new main sponsor and ran out with the new lettering on the chest during the test match. The online portal MeinAuto.de follows Vivawest, which only stepped in at short notice in March after Schalke ended its cooperation with the Russian oil company Gazprom.
Schalke: Schwolow (46th Ferryman) – Brunner (46th Aydin), Yoshida (46th Matriciani), Kaminski (46th Thiaw), Mohr (46th Calhanoglu) – Mollet (46th Idrizi), Latza (46th Pálsson), Krauss (46th Lee) – Bülter (46th Sané), Polter (46th Pieringer), Drexler (46th Zalazar)
Salerno: Sepe (Fiorillo 46) – Mazzocchi (46 Galeotafiore), Gagliolo, Fazi (46 Mantovani), Jaroszynski (46 Boultam) – Radovanovic (46 Iervolino), Bohinen (46 Cavion), Coulibaly (46 Kechrida), Capezzi (46th Sy), Ribery (26th D’Andrea) – Kristoffersen