round 1 - match preview

DFB Cup: Schalke out to kill off tie early

The Royal Blues will be looking to set a scorching pace right from the off when they take on fourth-tier side Eintracht Trier in the first round of the DFB Cup on Sunday (kick-off: 1700). "The longer it stays 0-0, the more they'll believe they can win. Then they'll raise their game. So we need an early goal to stop this happening", said head coach Mirko Slomka.

"We need to play to our strengths. Trier are the underdogs and they will go into the game highly motivated", predicted Slomka. "But if we kill the tie off early, we can ease the pace a bit."

This was particularly important ahead of the Bundesliga opener in Stuttgart next Friday (10 August). Stuttgart are in action in the cup on Saturday and will therefore have an extra day to recover. "And we've got to travel down to Swabia as well", the Schalke boss emphasised.

The Schalke management have had Trier watched at first hand. A scout was in the ground last weekend to see Trier's 3-0 win in their first league game of the season. Slomka is particularly looking forward to meeting up with Stefan Malchow again. "He was captain of the under-19s during my time at Tennis Borussia Berlin. We worked well together."

General manager Andreas Müller has no fond memories of Trier because of Schalke's cup exit there in 1997. "But we have two totally different teams now and so comparisons with that defeat make no sense. Borussia Dortmund suffered the same fate as us in the next round. The euphoria in Trier was so strong at the time it carried them all the way to the semi-finals."

Both Müller and Slomka agree that the cup has a habit of throwing up surprises. "So it's all the more important for us to stay focused and impose ourselves on the game from the outset", stressed Müller. And Slomka is certain the players will approach the game with the right attitude.

The Schalke boss will be without Mathias Abel, Gustavo Varela, Timo Kunert, Benedikt Höwedes and Soren Larsen, who are either injured or carrying knocks. Zlatan Bajramovic is also ruled out through suspension. The Bosnian midfielder was sent off in last year's defeat in Cologne.