Tough task ahead at Schalke…

VfL Wolfsburg is going through something of a barren patch at the moment… to put it lightly. Coach Erik Gerets and his side have lost all three of their league games since the winter break, and must now travel to Gelsenkirchen in round 21 where they take on the title contenders Schalke in front of around 60,000 spectators. After topping the Bundesliga table for ages before the winter break, the Wolves have dropped down to 9th place in the table. With so many injury headaches to deal with, it is hard to imagine how Gerets can approach the game in Schalke with any kind of optimism. Strength in depth is a saying often used in football circles, the trip to Schalke will prove whether or not the Wolves have enough of it…

Proper preparation impossible

Gerets will be without many players this week for differing reasons. The following players are on international duty for their respective countries, and will be unable to prepare properly for the trip to Schalke: Pablo Thiam (with Guinea in Paris against Mali), Hans Sarpei (with Ghana in Amsterdam against Ajax), Miroslav Karhan (with Slovakia in Larnaka against Cyprus), Martin Petrov (with Bulgaria in Sofia against Serbia and Montenegro) and Thomas Brdaric (with Germany in Düsseldorf against Argentinia).

Hofland returns from suspension

On the good news side, Dutch defender Kevin Hofland returns from suspension, but both Martin Petrov and Stefan Schnoor will miss the match against Schalke due to suspension, after both players picked up a fifth yellow card against Werder Bremen at the weekend.

Walking wounded

From the long list of injured players in the Wolfsburg treatment room at the moment, only Marino Biliskov (thigh strain) looks likely to return in Gelsenkirchen. Thomas Rytter has now picked up the flu to go with his injured knee. Diego Klimowicz, who has a hip problem, is unlikely to make the trip to Schalke, his compatriot Andrés D’Alessandro according to Erik Gerets: “Could play, but maybe for only 45 minutes.”