Schalke 04 in hot water: Coach Muslic downplays defeat in Lautern

There was no sign of any major disappointment among FC Schalke 04 late Saturday evening. Their perfect start, their second win in the second game of the new 2. Bundesliga season, may have been a failure. However, the 0-1 (0-0) defeat at 1. FC Kaiserslautern by no means caused despair for the local club.

"Without the penalty, this is a good 0-0 game," said coach Miron Muslic on the Sky broadcaster's microphone. But the decisive moment, in which FCK captain Marlon Ritter scored the only goal of the evening at the Betzenberg from the penalty spot in the 52nd minute, meant that the Royal Blues couldn't return home with at least one more point after their successful opening match a week ago (2-1 against Hertha BSC).

The last time the Gelsenkirchen team had two wins in a row at the start of a season was in 2009, albeit in the first division.

Looking back: A 2-1 win at 1. FC Nürnberg was followed by a 3-0 victory against VfL Bochum. In May 2010, S04 finished the season as runners-up behind FC Bayern. That was a long time ago.

With the ambition of quickly becoming at least one of the top 18 German clubs again, Muslic joined the storied club in the summer from relegated English second-division side Plymouth Argyle, which has been in a perpetual crisis for two years. 14th place last season was their lowest ever finish. Muslic and Co. quickly won the hearts of the fans at the Veltins Arena when Schalke's new style of football led directly to the desired success against Berlin.

The FCK players celebrate Marlon Ritter's golden goal. In front: Schalke's beaten goalkeeper Loris Karius.

Source: Uwe Anspach/dpa

And now – has it all already vanished? Ron Schallenberg viewed the narrow defeat in the Palatinate from two perspectives. "Inevitably, the team had to play differently than at home" in the traditional cauldron of Kaiserslautern, the midfielder said. "We didn't create any clear opportunities," Schallenberg said, "but we didn't allow much either."

Like his coach, he would have considered a goalless draw a good result, "one for which there's no need to apologize." At the same time, however, it's equally true that Schalke "never created any good chances," as goalkeeper Loris Karius said. Karius: "We need a bit more power going forward, even if we're not playing at home."

Coach Muslic consistently advocated a bold and straightforward offensive approach during preseason. In the duel with FCK, precision was lacking, and high balls to striker Moussa Sylla, who was largely overwhelmed, proved ineffective against the opposing defense's overwhelming aerial prowess.

The 42-year-old Austrian was asked whether his team had perhaps lost faith in their own team and the new ideas he had introduced as a result of falling behind shortly after the second half; he denied it. "We were beaten 1-0, but it was a decent performance; we never gave up," Muslic replied.

"Stay calm," Karius demanded. After two games, from which we've taken three points, he sees a "start we can build on, especially the young players who are new to the team."

That's precisely what's crucial. The new path includes an experienced goalkeeper and captain Kenan Karaman, who came on after injury, as well as a great deal of inexperience. Defender Vitalie Becker (20), who trained at S04's Knappenschmiede (Knappenschmiede), attacker Peter Remmert, who is the same age, and new signing Soufiane El-Faouzi (who joined from third-division side Alemannia Aachen) now have a combined experience of eight second-division appearances.

It's still hard work. It comes before good football, as befits the fans of the "hard-working club" in the Ruhr region, that's no secret. The trip to the Red Devils' kitchen demonstrated just how far they have to go to live up to their growing ambitions – from a problem child threatened by relegation to a serious promotion candidate.