Everyone in Munich has been grinning recently whenever Manuel Neuer’s name has been brought up.
The keeper came out recently and said that his future has been decided. For the sake of Schalke, Neuer will not reveal his decision until the season’s end. The rumours in Munich all suggest strongly that Neuer is heading to Bavaria.
The blond referred to as Schalke’s “Soul” by former coach Felix Magath is the image of the club. He holds strong connections with the club; he doesn’t know much about the football world outside of Gelsenkirchen. He is loved at Schalke and respected immensely by the fans. He is the captain; the fans will not be able to think of a replacement for their beloved Manuel.
Life goes on; Schalke is in search of a replacement. Reports emerging show that Schalke is interested in Oliver Baumann. Thomas Kraft has pledged to leave Bayern if Neuer comes into the club. He might be another viable option. Reports from the media suggest that Schalke is also interested in Hanover’s youngster and former Manchester United youth player, Ron Robert Zieler.
Neuer has dug Schalke out of plenty of deep holes. He has kept them in games in which they were destined to lose. Dortmund will testify to this; in the Ruhr Derby, Schalke almost spent the entire night in their own penalty area- Neuer saved a point for the Royal Blues in a 0-0 draw. There is very little argument to the fact that Schalke possesses the best keeper in the world. However, when Bayern comes calling, very few refuse to answer.
Currently, after Magath’s mass clear-out, the only players that fans can associate with are Benedikt Howedes and Joel Matip. Raul, Atsuto Uchida and co are all popular figures; however, Howedes came through the youth ranks of Schalke after arriving at the club as a 14 year old. Howedes is a brash but reliable defender and he can score wonderful goals too as we all saw in the Champions League.
Raul, despite having arrived less than a year ago has pledged his future to Schalke and the fans have warmed up to him. He might be the club’s face and saviour in times of need after Neuer’s departure. He is undoubtedly an extremely popular man in Gelsenkirchen. The young Alexander Baumjohann and the tough Kyriakos Papadopoulos are two players that the fans are surely also fond of.
The aforementioned Joel Matip is another young hero of the club. He has been at Schalke since he was ten years old. Matip made his Bundesliga debut against Bayern and scored. That is one way in which one can immediately enter the hearts of the fans. Matip has since then quietly made his way through the past one and a half seasons. He has done a good job whenever he has been called upon.
However, none of the Schalke players has the voice that Neuer has. Raul is rather quiet and shy and likes keeping his thoughts to himself. Neuer, during the course of the season, came out and expressed his thoughts to the public numerous times. Neither Howedes nor Matip has the status to do that currently. While a section of the Bayern fans have insulted him publicly, voicing their support instead for youngster Thomas Kraft, the Schalke fans have adored Neuer.
Sometimes, a club can be left in tatters when their best player leaves. Werder is enduring a horrid season after being unable to settle down following Mesut Oezil’s much publicized move to Real Madrid. Stuttgart has been left in tatters and is currently battling relegation following the departure of Sami Khedira, also, to Real Madrid. Zenit St. Petersburg failed to reach their previous heights in Europe after the departure of Andrei Arshavin.
Likewise, Manchester United endured a poor season according to their standards last year after Cristiano Ronaldo departed for Madrid. Schalke will hope that no such problems occur for them. However, having to settle for a keeper who isn’t as convincing between the sticks as Neuer is will be extremely difficult to come to terms with, especially for the fans.
Schalke has to start looking for a new hero quickly. However, the fans will hope that their departing hero will give them a parting gift before his departure; whether it be the German Cup or the Champions League. One thing is for sure though; even if Schalke finds a new hero, Neuer’s shoes will never be easily filled. He will dwell in the minds of Schalke fans for ages to come.
The blond referred to as Schalke’s “Soul” by former coach Felix Magath is the image of the club. He holds strong connections with the club; he doesn’t know much about the football world outside of Gelsenkirchen. He is loved at Schalke and respected immensely by the fans. He is the captain; the fans will not be able to think of a replacement for their beloved Manuel.
Life goes on; Schalke is in search of a replacement. Reports emerging show that Schalke is interested in Oliver Baumann. Thomas Kraft has pledged to leave Bayern if Neuer comes into the club. He might be another viable option. Reports from the media suggest that Schalke is also interested in Hanover’s youngster and former Manchester United youth player, Ron Robert Zieler.
Neuer has dug Schalke out of plenty of deep holes. He has kept them in games in which they were destined to lose. Dortmund will testify to this; in the Ruhr Derby, Schalke almost spent the entire night in their own penalty area- Neuer saved a point for the Royal Blues in a 0-0 draw. There is very little argument to the fact that Schalke possesses the best keeper in the world. However, when Bayern comes calling, very few refuse to answer.
Currently, after Magath’s mass clear-out, the only players that fans can associate with are Benedikt Howedes and Joel Matip. Raul, Atsuto Uchida and co are all popular figures; however, Howedes came through the youth ranks of Schalke after arriving at the club as a 14 year old. Howedes is a brash but reliable defender and he can score wonderful goals too as we all saw in the Champions League.
Raul, despite having arrived less than a year ago has pledged his future to Schalke and the fans have warmed up to him. He might be the club’s face and saviour in times of need after Neuer’s departure. He is undoubtedly an extremely popular man in Gelsenkirchen. The young Alexander Baumjohann and the tough Kyriakos Papadopoulos are two players that the fans are surely also fond of.
The aforementioned Joel Matip is another young hero of the club. He has been at Schalke since he was ten years old. Matip made his Bundesliga debut against Bayern and scored. That is one way in which one can immediately enter the hearts of the fans. Matip has since then quietly made his way through the past one and a half seasons. He has done a good job whenever he has been called upon.
However, none of the Schalke players has the voice that Neuer has. Raul is rather quiet and shy and likes keeping his thoughts to himself. Neuer, during the course of the season, came out and expressed his thoughts to the public numerous times. Neither Howedes nor Matip has the status to do that currently. While a section of the Bayern fans have insulted him publicly, voicing their support instead for youngster Thomas Kraft, the Schalke fans have adored Neuer.
Sometimes, a club can be left in tatters when their best player leaves. Werder is enduring a horrid season after being unable to settle down following Mesut Oezil’s much publicized move to Real Madrid. Stuttgart has been left in tatters and is currently battling relegation following the departure of Sami Khedira, also, to Real Madrid. Zenit St. Petersburg failed to reach their previous heights in Europe after the departure of Andrei Arshavin.
Likewise, Manchester United endured a poor season according to their standards last year after Cristiano Ronaldo departed for Madrid. Schalke will hope that no such problems occur for them. However, having to settle for a keeper who isn’t as convincing between the sticks as Neuer is will be extremely difficult to come to terms with, especially for the fans.
Schalke has to start looking for a new hero quickly. However, the fans will hope that their departing hero will give them a parting gift before his departure; whether it be the German Cup or the Champions League. One thing is for sure though; even if Schalke finds a new hero, Neuer’s shoes will never be easily filled. He will dwell in the minds of Schalke fans for ages to come.
