Fri Apr 11 16:54:43 2008

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Schalke hopes to bounce back against Werder

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Bremen, Germany (Sports Network) - Just four days after being eliminated from the Champions League, Schalke will turn its attention toward returning to next year's competition Saturday at Werder Bremen.

Schalke, eliminated in the Champions League quarterfinals by Barcelona, is in second in Germany's Bundesliga with seven matches left in the season.

The top three clubs qualify for the Champions League - Schalke finished second last year - but seven teams are still in the hunt for the final two berths.

Bayern Munich has all but secured its 21st crown, but Schalke, Hamburg, Werder Bremen, Stuttgart, Bayer Leverkusen, Wolfsburg and Eintracht are all separated by just six points.

This weekend's clash at Bremen's Weserstadion gives Schalke and Werder a great chance to increase their chances with just over a month left in the season.

Although the Royal Blues were knocked out of the Champions League, they played well enough in stretches that coach Mirko Slomka is excited about the rest of the league campaign.

"In the two clashes against Barcelona we were great for 90 minutes, but we were also poor for 90 minutes. That's not enough to beat a class outfit like them," Slomka said.

Schalke used four midfielders in a diamond formation in the second leg at Nou Camp in Barcelona with Fabian Ernst in the holding role, Jermaine Jones on the right, Levan Kobiashvili on the left and Halil Altintop in the attacking role.

Although the change didn't produce any goals - Barcelona won each leg 1-0 - it did cause plenty of problems for the Spanish giants.

"They played very well in the first half and we will need to be wary of that," Bremen midfielder Tim Borowski said. "They are very opponent oriented which means a lot more mobility will be necessary on our behalf."

Fourth-place Werder Bremen is level in points with third-place Hamburg and two behind Schalke. Although Werder has been out of the Champions League and UEFA Cup for weeks, midfielder Torsten Frings doesn't think his side will have any advantage.

"We were at a disadvantage ourselves often enough," he said, "and still put on good performances. That won't be the decisive factor here."

Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf knows Schalke will be a tough opponent this week.

"They won't be coming here to hide out. They'll try to play attacking football ... Schalke is a side that plays in a very compact manner and have a distinct amount of aggression in their game," Schaaf said.

On Friday, Nurnberg led Wolfsburg, 1-0, when the match was abandoned at half due to flooded pitch. A win would have lifted Nurnberg out of the relegation zone. The game will be replayed at a date and time yet to be determined.

Also Saturday, Hamburg hosts Duisburg, Bochum hosts Hertha Berlin, Karlsruher hosts Rostock, Energie hosts Arminia Bielefeld and Hannover hosts Eintracht.

On Sunday, Bayer Leverkusen hosts Stuttgart and Bayern Munich hosts Borussia Dortmund.