After three games, Simon Terodde is still waiting for his first goal of the season. FC Schalke 04’s promotion guarantor even became a tragic figure last weekend when he missed two penalties. Critics who have long accused the veteran of not having the necessary skills for the 1st division feel vindicated. Right?
It was fitting for this used day that the editors of the “Aktuelle Sportstudio” incorrectly announced their guest as “Simon Terrode”, but the hapless goalscorer from Schalke 04 had long since found his sense of humor again on Saturday evening.
So Simon Terodde joked about his World Cup chances, claiming that he “didn’t qualify for the knockout games plus penalties” – and thus got rid of his frustration over his missed shots in the 0-0 draw in Wolfsburg.
“I’m responsible for the fact that we didn’t win. Unfortunately, that’s the way it is,” admitted the 34-year-old honestly – and thus confirmed the eternal doubters who simply don’t want to trust him to be able to score regularly in the German upper house.
In injury time in the first half, he missed a penalty against VfL goalkeeper Koen Casteels. And Terodde didn’t convert the second attempt either – the penalty was repeated because Casteels had left the goal line: “As a centre-forward I’m often the celebrated hero. Today it hurts, really hurts.”
Terodde’s goals helped FC Schalke to rise
He always tries to “take responsibility,” said Terodde, admitting: “I’m really disappointed, but there are certainly ways to make up for it.”
Apparently his team-mates see it that way too, he received a lot of “encouraging words from my teammates, they don’t blame me,” reported the veteran.
Because they too will know that without Terodde’s goal last season, they would most likely not have played in the Bundesliga. In 2021/22, Terodde S04 scored 30 goals for promotion.
One floor higher, however, the native of Bocholter does not want to do it again. Even on the fourth attempt, Terodde threatens after the first impressions of not being able to shake off the stigma of the eternal second division snapper.
New style of FC Schalke does not suit Terodde
But it is also true that FC Schalke plays very differently under the new coach Frank Kramer than in the promotion year. The extremely run-intensive style, in which a compact defense is more important than constant pressure forward, does not suit Terodde.
In the three previous encounters against Cologne (25% ball possession), Gladbach (32%) and Wolfsburg (28%), the Royal Blues rarely had the ball and they always scored fewer shots on goal than their opponents. Proof of the difficult circumstances under which penalty area specialist Terodde has to work in the 1st league.
His undisputed final qualities, especially with his head, have also hardly come into their own with only seven corner kicks so far. And even when he had twice the chance from the penalty spot, Terodde missed the opportunity to refute his critics.
The “WAZ” already reported a “quiet discussion” about the attacker, who scored ten goals in 61 Bundesliga appearances. For comparison: In the lower house there are 172 goals in 283 games.
Terodde is said to be fully resilient again – or is it?
In any case, the discussion about Terodde’s suitability for the first division is already in full swing on social media.
“The funny thing about Terodde is that you could transfer him to Sandhausen tomorrow and he would score 36 goals this season in the Bundesliga,” wrote a Twitter user Marcel. the user Jan stated: “There are reasons why Terodde has never made it into the Bundesliga.”
Even the doubters have to give the 34-year-old credit for the fact that the new style of play and the complicated preparations for the season – Terodde had been out for several weeks due to muscular problems – are not that easy to put down.
Although he says he is fully resilient again, the target player left the field twice in the middle of the second round. According to “kicker”, this was because the Schalke managers wanted to act much more cautiously, even with minor complaints, so as not to take any risks.
So it might still be too early to put his unloved stamp back on Terodde. On the other hand: The striker shouldn’t wait too long to score his first goal of the season, after all, his competitor Sebastian Polter is already pawing his hooves in the background.
Otherwise, the currently cautiously burgeoning doubts threaten to become a greater burden – not only for Terodde, but also for FC Schalke 04.
Heiko Lütkehus (With “AFP” material)