The 53-year-old lives “Schalke and Gelsenkirchen 24 hours a day,” is one of the reasons given. He should lead the second division until the end of the season – and still achieve promotion.
The previous assistant coach Mike Büskens will be the new head coach of the second division soccer team FC Schalke 04 until the end of the season. The 53-year-old follows Dimitrios Grammozis on an interim basis, as the Gelsenkirchen team announced on Monday evening.
Schalke’s sports director Rouven Schröder said they were “100 percent convinced” that Büskens was the right choice for the final phase of the season. The 1997 European Cup winner lives “Schalke and Gelsenkirchen 24 hours a day and will do everything to ensure that we have the chance of promotion to the Bundesliga until the last matchday,” said Schröder.
“When Rouven approached me on Sunday afternoon with the club’s request, I first sought a conversation with my family and with Huub Stevens. Everyone advised me to take on the task until the end of the season,” Büskens was quoted as saying celebrated the greatest success in Schalke club history 25 years ago. Sixth in the table, the Royal Blues are currently six points behind the promotion places with nine games still to play.
The sporting misery falls in already troubled times at the traditional club
However, Büskens cannot currently lead the training: he tested positive for the corona virus on Sunday. According to the club, he currently has no symptoms. First, Matthias Kreutzer leads the training units. Schalke parted ways with Grammozis on Sunday after the Royal Blues lost 4-3 to FC Hansa Rostock.
The sporting misery and the change of coach come at a time when the traditional club is already restless. As a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Schalke ended their cooperation with their sponsor Gazprom last week. Since 2007, the Russian state-owned company has been the most important financier of the Gelsenkirchen company, which is burdened with around 200 million euros in liabilities. The club quickly found a new jersey sponsor in Vivawest. However, the revenues from the temporary partnership are likely to be below those from the Gazprom era. That’s another reason why a quick return to the Bundesliga would be important.
