Jens Keller never got the right welcome at Schalke to begin with.
And that should have been an indication of what was to come.
Keller replaced Huub Stevens as Schalke 04 manager back in December 2012 following a winless run of 6 league matches. Schalke were still without a win after his first 4 matches in charge. So, fans started calling for Keller’s head.
But Keller stayed on much to their chagrin and led the club to a 4th place finish in the Bundesliga. As a result, his contract was extended for another couple of years. In his first full tenure at the Veltins, he did one better by getting Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and co to battle their way to a 3rd place finish in the Bundesliga. All this, despite a lack of job security which he could have probably done with – each time the team hit a bad patch, the fans would bay for his blood. The lack of support from fans deemed to be one of the noisiest in the country, definitely did not help.
Keller started off this season in typical Schalke style – only 2 wins in 7 matches, an identical streak to how he fared last season. But unlike last season, club CEO Horst Heldt could not fend off the circling vultures calling for the axe to fall on Keller. So in came the man Schalke initially wanted to replace Huub Stevens – Roberto Di Matteo.
Known as the Best Caretaker Manager for his achievements at Chelsea, Di Matteo did break the Blues’ drought in Europe since that 1997/98 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup triumph. And he did what even Jose Mourinho, Guus Hiddink and Carlo Ancelotti couldn’t – deliver the Champions League trophy to club owner Roman Abramovich. You’d think that was enough to earn him an extended stay of execution at the club. But following Chelsea’s early exit in the group stages of the 2012/13 Champions League, 5 months after he’d won the FA Cup and European title for the club, he was sacked.
Two years on, and Schalke finally land their man. But is he the answer to their problems?
His over-achievements at Chelsea has somewhat deemed his ‘performance’ at MK Dons where he made his managerial debut and then later West Bromwich Albion, all but forgotten. In summary, he led the Dons to a 3rd place finish in the team’s first League One season. He then guided Championship side West Brom, to promotion into the Premier League. But his stay was short-lived in what was to be his first full season as a Premier League manager. With the Baggies languishing in 16th, damage control was in order and Di Matteo was given his marching orders. Then came the gig at Chelsea, as assistant manager to Andre Villas Boas.
Some might say, he merely had to guide a team that was already ‘80% complete’ thanks in part to his predecessor’s work, over the finish line. Chelsea finished one place lower in the Premier League than where AVB had left them when he was sacked. Along the way they lost to eventual league champions Manchester City, Newcastle and Liverpool, winning 4 and tying the other 3. In the FA Cup, he disposed off Birmingham, Leicester, Spurs and Liverpool in the final.
Having taken over after the 3 – 1 loss in Naples in the round of 16 of the Champions League, Di Matteo had a tough task in trying to salvage their season in Europe. But his Chelsea surprised everyone by winning their return leg 4 – 1 at The Bridge, beating Benfica in the quarterfinals and stunning Barcelona in the first leg semi-final. The fairy tale continued against Bayern Munich in the final, to etch Di Matteo’s name in Chelsea folklore as the first man to bring the European Cup to London.
So, the question remains, can he deliver the same display of defensive defiance with this inherited Schalke team? Or a calculated offence when required in tight Bundesliga encounters? He does have stars within his ranks with the likes of captain Ben Howedes, Kevin-Prince Boateng, Julian Draxler and Klaas Jan Huntelaar, if they can somewhat stay injury free. And if he can utilize Jefferson Farfan, Sidney Sam and Eric Maxim Chuopo-Moting well, he’d have reliability and experience on his side. In addition, Joel Matip, Leon Goretzka and Max Meyer gives him youth to build the side from.
Di Matteo’s foremost task though should be in conquering the support of the raucous Ruhr fans. Convincing them that he’s the right man for the job might prove trickier than molding the way his team plays. Keller’s downfall at the Veltins might just have been in failing to win over the fickle home support – who did not think highly of the football coach, constantly depicted as a weak, mild-mannered teacher by the touchline – and ultimately the final nail on his coffin. So, if Di Matteo wants his stay in Gelsenkirchen to last longer than the one in London, he’ll have to win over the Royal Blue army.
One thing is for sure, it makes the Champions League meeting against his old club Chelsea at the end of November a whole lot more interesting in a group that also consists of Maribor and Sporting Lisbon.
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