| The long wait finally comes to an end on Friday evening. The new season in Germany opens with the traditional clash between Schalke 04 and Hertha Berlin. The visitors from the capital, who made some prominent and high-quality additions this summer, will do everything in their power to ruin Miron Muslic's coaching debut in the Ruhr region. FC Schalke 04 has arguably endured the weakest season in the club's history. The Royal Blues earned just 38 points in the last second-division season, finishing in 14th place. For the second consecutive season, the former Champions League participant was far from considering a potential return to the top flight. While Schalke 04 is keeping a low profile regarding it's goals and prefers to wait for the first matches, Hertha BSC management is making no secret of their ambition to achieve promotion to the Bundesliga this year. Admittedly, understatement would be implausible. This is partly because the capital club naturally sees itself in Germany's top flight and is also considered a top favorite by bookmakers. This is partly because of the very active summer transfer market, which has brought with it many good new signings. |
