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After yet another defeat in the Bundesliga, Schalke will entertain fellow strugglers Arminia Bielefeld on Saturday.
Manuel Baum’s side were lacklustre at home against Freiburg, and were deservedly beaten 2-0 by the away side. The Royal Blues just can’t seem to find any cohesion and pick up a morale-boosting win to end their 27-game winless streak.
Arminia, unlike Schalke, have won a couple of times, but also have the record of most defeats in the Bundesliga this season. Uwe Neuhaus’ side were narrowly beaten by Augsburg in their last fixture, and the game could have gone either way. Augsburg’s late winner will have hurt on Wednesday, and they will hope to put things right against Schalke.
The clash on Saturday is a must-win for both teams. While Schalke can end what has been a horrific year on something positive and look ahead, Arminia will be able to put some distance between themselves and the bottom two.
Schalke vs Arminia Bielefeld Head-to-head
The Schalke fans will be worried by the team’s approach as they created nothing noteworthy against Freiburg.
But that isn’t their only problem as they have been pretty dire at the back as well. The confidence was shattered even more following the late goal they conceded against the 10 men of Augsburg last Sunday.
Baum’s side have not kept a single clean sheet this season, and need to learn how to grind out a result in these testing times.
Arminia have found it hard in the top-flight following their promotion, and like Schalke, they have struggled to keep clean sheets. Their only shut-out was against FC Koln in late September. Considering the situation both teams are in, a clean sheet come Saturday would be a massive shot in the arm.
Schalke and Arminia haven’t played each other much as this is the latter club’s first season in the top-flight. The last time they faced off was in the DFB Pokal, a closely-fought game that Schalke won 3-2 in 2019.
Schalke form guide: L-L-L-D-L
Arminia Bielefeld form guide: L-L-W-L-L
Schalke vs Arminia Bielefeld Team News
It is unlikely Mark Uth will return for this game, and his absence will be a big blow. Uth and Goncalo Paciencia offered Schalke some creativity and physical presence up top, and without the two they have struggled in the final third.
Injuries: Goncalo Paciencia
Doubtful: Mark Uth, Frederik Ronnow
Suspensions: None
Arminia manager Uwe Neuhaus is expected to make a one or two changes to the team that was beaten by Augsburg. Nathan de Medina started against Augsburg, but he might return to the bench for Anderson Lucoqui.
Injuries: Arne Maier, Noel Niemann, Jacob Barrett Laursen, Andreas Voglsammer
Doubtful: None
Suspensions: None
Schalke vs Arminia Bielefeld Predicted Lineups
Schalke predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Ralf Fährmann; Malick Thiaw, Ozan Kabak, Salif Sane, Bastian Oczipka; Omar Mascarell, Suat Serdar; Amine Harit, Alessandro Schopf, Benito Raman; Ahmed Kutucu
Arminia Bielefeld predicted XI (4-4-2): Stefan Ortega; Anderson Lucoqui, Joakim Nilsson, Mike Van der Hoorn, Cedric Brunner; Fabian Kunze, Marcel Hartel, Sergio Cordova, Ritsu Doan; Fabian Klos, Sven Schipplock
Schalke vs Arminia Bielefeld Prediction
This is Schalke’s final Bundesliga home game of the year, and needless to say, they need to put an end to a torrid run and look ahead.
We reckon Manuel Baum’s side will put in a big performance against Arminia to pick up their first win of the season.
Score prediction: Schalke 2-0 Arminia
