The "Eurovor" was reborn in Bundesliga 25 years later! Schalke 04 returned to the Bundesliga in the first round

Sports Weekly all-media reporter Huang Sijun

On 7 May 1997, Schalke 04 beat Inter Milan 1–0 at home in the first leg of the UEFA Cup final, laying the groundwork for a historic victory at the Giuseppe Meazza stadium two weeks later. Exactly 25 years later, on the same day, Schalke once again won a great victory at home – albeit from Park Stadium to Veltins Arena. Under the adversity of falling behind 0-2 at halftime, the "European fighter" Boothens led the team to reverse St. Pauli 3-2, thus upgrading 1 round in advance! This is also the fourth time that the Miners have returned from the Bundesliga to the Bundesliga after 1982, 1984 and 1991.

Schalke fans pouring into the stadium held up Trod, the number one hero.

Like the Europa League revelry at Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt two days ago, Schalke fans flocked to the infield to celebrate wildly with players, coaches and executives. Boothens, who completed his second promotion as interim manager (which led Fürth's historic promotion in 2012), is so excited that he will return as an assistant coach next season: "Think about what has happened here in the last two years: you can't win anything, you're relegated in silence, you don't even have a team – and then gradually twist into a rope, everyone here is ready to charge for others. ”

Boothens turned things around

If it weren't for Buskens' imminent death, Schalke would probably have spent at least another year in the purgatory of the Bundesliga. He took over the title from Gramozis in early March, when Schalke had just lost 3-4 at home to promoted Marrowstock, dropping to 6th, six points away from the direct promotion zone, and with only nine rounds of matches just away from the end of the season.

When he won the 1997 Confederations Cup, Boothens (second from right) was part of the "European Fighters".

Unfortunately, when he decided to temporarily take over the reins of the coach, Boothkens was infected with the new crown, so his debut could only be remotely controlled at home, and his assistant Matthias Kreuzze was in charge of the on-the-spot command. With the magical performance of Uruguayan youngster Salazar, who came off the bench, Schalke went on in the second half and won deputy squad leader Ingolstadt 3-0, opening the curtain for a wave of the longest 5-game winning streak of the season. After a 3-0 home win over Heidenheim in the 29th round, the Miners finally reached the top for the first time.

Buskens' transformation of the team after taking over the coaching seal can be described as a drastic transformation, the most significant point is to abandon the three-centre-back system that Gramozis has always insisted on, and instead play four backs, using a 4231 or 4222 formation. Players like Sarazar, who had always been unable to play at the right level under Gramezis, were also activated by Boothens. In the sprint of the season, the Uruguayan rookie, who played well from Eintracht Frankfurt to San Paoli last season, in addition to 1 goal and 2 assists after coming off the bench against Ingolstadt, also had a number of key plays, including a substitute goal in the promotion battle against old club St. Pauli.

Now Buskens is leading Schalke back into the Bundesliga as interim manager.

But compared to the platooning, the changes that Buskens has brought to the team are more reflected in the spiritual level. Alongside the passionate Boothens, there is also the equally emotional sports director Ruben Schroeder and professional team director Asamoah. These 3 competitive leaders will inject their competitive genes into the team, both before and during the game.

Schalke's "Wild Big Three" – Boothens, Ruben Schroeder and Asamoah (from left).

Bild joked that Boothens repeatedly stressed that "the fans can be our 12th man", when in fact Schalke had a "13th man" on the pitch, namely Boothens, Schroeder and Asamoah. In addition to the "Wild Big Three", the temporary return from the German Football Federation to assist Bouskens' old assistant coach Peter Hermann (70 years old) brings the necessary experience and calmness. Schroeder emphasizes: "Despite the fanaticism on the outside, we are very calm inside. ”

0 to 2? "Best First Half"!

Boothens was by no means smooth sailing. Schalke's five-game winning streak ended at home by number one rival Werder Bremen, and it was a crushing defeat, with Trodd scoring a faceless goal for Schalke in the 88th minute, when he was 4-0 behind. After the home rout, Schalke had to give up the top spot that had not yet sat hot, and it was widely believed that Bremen's immediate return to the Bundesliga was stable.

Unexpectedly, the following round of matches had a very dramatic result: Bremen was reversed 3-2 by coach Holsteinkill, the old club of Ole Werner, in a good situation of 2 goals at home, and At the same time, Schalke, who was visiting Sandhausen, staged a great killing by Trod in the first minute of stoppage time! As a result, Schalke returned to the top, while Bremen suddenly fell out of the direct upgrade zone, and Darmstadt rose to no. 2.

Sandhausen was eliminated in stoppage time last time, and Schalke dramatically returned to the top of the table.

Darmstadt took the lead on Friday night and was beaten 2-1 away from home by the desperate Düsseldorf. So Hamburg squeezed Darmstadt out of the direct upgrade zone after a 2-1 home win over Hanover 96 on Saturday afternoon. This means that Bremen, who only played on Sunday afternoon, can return to No. 2 as long as they don't lose, and their opponent is the relegated O'Er. Schalke, who came on Saturday night, didn't really have to pay any attention to others, just make sure he won the home field to be promoted early.

Although St. Pauli has also participated in the upgrade competition and has led the way for a long time, it is obviously lacking in stamina and has not won since April. Burgstaler, the top scorer who previously played for Schalke, was injured at an inopportune time, and there was an outbreak in the team last weekend, with as many as nine players posing for the new crown, so this St. Pauli, who appeared at the Fertins Arena, was at best at the middle of the Bundesliga. However, it was The youngster Who replaced Burgstadt and Makinok as the starting center of the center, Mattanovic, who started less than 20 minutes, went down to the two cities. You know, the 19-year-old high school striker has made no profit in his first 17 appearances this season!

Trod scored on a penalty and blew Schalke's counter-attacking horn.

Trailing 2-0 at half-time, exactly the same situation as the last home game against Bremen! But this time, Schalke awaits not another fiasco, but the most exciting comeback after the 4-4 derby against Borussia Dortmund in November 2017. Boothens revealed after the game that he was relatively relaxed at halftime because Schalke actually created a lot of scoring opportunities in the first half, even the "best first half this team played" that he had ever seen, "I told them at halftime: We have to get one and then we will reverse." ”

The merit of "De'er Levan" is complete

It was the most trusted Trood who blew the counter-attack horn, who played less than half a minute in the second half and scored a penalty himself. In the 71st minute, he received another header from Churlinov and equalised with a right-footed goal from the edge of the penalty area. By the 78th minute, Trod attracted the attention of the entire St. Pauli defense in a fast attack, and the forward partner Bild calmly broke through the cross and helped the undefended Salazar to break the net with his right foot, 3-2!

Schalke fans poured into the stadium to celebrate their return to the Bundesliga.

The home defeat cost Bremen of the top spot, and Sandhausen regained the top spot in stoppage time, allowing the 2-3 reverse St. Pauli to upgrade early, and Schalke crossed the finish line in the most dramatic way! After the final whistle, the 34-year-old Trod burst into tears and fell to his knees on the grass in excitement. Although this is not the first time he has helped the team to promotion to the Bundesliga (helping Stuttgart in 2017 and Cologne in 2019), after last season's failure in Hamburg, he surpassed Schachneider to become the top scorer in Bundesliga history and is about to pick up the Bundesliga's top scorer "Little Steel Cannon" for the fourth time in a record 4th time. With 29 goals and four assists in 29 appearances, the "Lewandowski of the Bundesliga" was The number one contributor to Schalke's immediate return to the Bundesliga.

Schalke fans have harvested souvenirs.

Although he only joined Schalke last summer, Trod was born in Boholt, not far from Gelsenkirchen, so playing for Schalke has a special meaning for him. As early as the beginning of his franchise, he said: "At some point, when Schalke was playing in the Bundesliga, I wanted to sit in the garden and have a barbecue and be able to patronise the success chapter of this club. ”

Trod and Kaminsky, who helped Stuttgart upgrade in the 2016/17 season, are now back yesterday in Schalke.

While qualifying for promotion in the Bundesliga is not a feat for a club like Schalke, in what may be the most competitive Bundesliga season in history is the first to beat the line with rivalry between Bremen, Hamburg, Nuremberg, Darmstadt and St. Pauli, and both Trood and other Schalkes have reason to celebrate like any other victory in team history. Schroeder said, "Man can only live once, and we are going to celebrate this time today!" ”