Mining for Gold - FC Schalke 04

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Weinzierl shown the door

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News coming out of the Veltins Arena today suggest that Schalke have parted company with boss Markus Weinzierl after a disappointing season, with the club finishing in an underwhelming 10th position in the Bundesliga. Weinzierl leaves after just one season at the helm, with the former Augsburg boss failing to attain the results that the club deems acceptable. Director of Football Christian Heidel was asked about his plans in mind to take the club forward. "The objective obviously now is to choose a right candidate for this job, someone with new ideas and someone with a passion for football. It wasn't the best of seasons under Markus and while I'm sad to see him go, it was a decision taken with the club's best interests at heart.", said Heidel. On asked if there was a specific profile the club was looking for in their new manager, Heidel responded simply saying "We want to get in a manager who can connect with the players on and off the pitch as well, a manager who the players can look up to and at the same time consider him as their friend. Whilst results are important, we want the manager to follow certain philosophies and make an identity for this club, something which has gone missing in recent years."

Several managers are believed to be interested in the post at Schalke, currently unemployed manager Thomas Tuchel is odds-on favourite, although the move won't be warmly welcomed by a majority of the Miners faithful, with his former Dortmund ties. Other names being mentioned are Felix Magath, currently managing in China, Hoffenheim managerial prodigy Julian Nagelsmann and current Leipzig director of football Ralf Rangnick, who previously managed the club in two brief spells.

New Schalke manager betting odds-
Thomas Tuchel - 9/5
Ralf Rangnick - 11/5
Felix Magath - 14/4
Julian Nagelsmann - 17/2
Domenico Tedesco - 19/1
Christoph Metzelder - 24/1

Keep following for the latest news from all over the Bundesliga, and Gelsenkirchen in particular.

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Enter Kale


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FC Schalke 04 today have announced the appointment of virtually unknown Ajinkya Kale as their new manager. Kale, hailing from India made 21 appearances for his national team, scoring 4 goals, but with India's standing in football as low it is, it has come as a huge surprise that he was chosen for one of the biggest jobs in Germany, if not the world. Many Schalke fans are said to be in disbelief at the low-profile appointment, however club chairman Christian Tonnies has full faith in his choice - "We at the club felt that it was time for a fresh start, and with Ajinkya, we believe he can combine his fresh start with that of the club's. A young, ambitious manager who has the world to seize is what we saw in the man, and we are delighted to be giving him his first shot at showing the world what he, and we can do."

Kale, originally a Tottenham fan, has been given a monumental task to carry the club's expectations on his very young shoulders, with pressure aplenty, having beaten big names to the job, drawing skepticism from fans and pundits alike. Even though the fans aren't particularly pleased with the appointment, there is a sense of tangible excitement and intrigue to see what the Indian manager brings to the table. It promises to be an interesting season ahead for Schalke, and who knows, many more seasons should the appointment pay off.​