Schalke take on the visitors Hertha Berlin in the round 1 match of German Bundesliga 2. The match will be played on Friday, August 1st at Veltins Arena (Gelsenkirchen).
Schalke have experienced plenty of success throughout their history. Their last notable run came under Domenico Tedesco — finishing second in the Bundesliga and reaching the Champions League knockout stages. However, even under Tedesco, their first major decline began, and the team dropped to the second division. They briefly returned to the top flight but couldn’t stay up, and have now become somewhat stuck in 2. Bundesliga. Last season, they managed only 38 points, finishing 14th — just above the relegation zone. For a club of Schalke’s stature and ambitions, that’s far from acceptable, and the pressure is now on head coach Karel Mutscher to turn things around. He arrives from Plymouth Argyle, where he impressed in the English Championship earlier in 2025. The challenge of managing in Germany is new for him, and all eyes will be on how quickly he can adapt.
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Hertha continue to disappoint. The Old Lady are another club with high expectations. Just a few years ago, they attracted a major investor and made significant moves in the transfer market, aiming for a breakthrough. But instead of pushing forward, the team fell apart — and relegation to the second tier felt like a natural outcome of that collapse. Since dropping down, Hertha haven’t managed to mount a serious promotion push. Last season, they finished just 11th with 44 points, slightly ahead of Schalke but still well below expectations. This summer has seen more departures than arrivals — with promising youngsters like Scherhant and Maza sold, and mainly free agents brought in. Even the signing of a well-known player like Dawid Kownacki doesn’t fully offset the concerns around squad quality.
Two seasons ago, Hertha dominated this fixture with back-to-back wins. But in the 2024/25 campaign, Schalke managed to fight back, earning a draw and a win. Hertha are rightly considered slight favorites based on overall squad balance. But we’ll play it safe and take the visitors with a 0 handicap.
Prediction for the match: Hertha to win with 0.0 handicap.
