Schalke 04 vs Borussia M'gladbach Prediction - How Will Last Weekend's Defeat Affect Schalke's Next Performances?

Next Sunday, Schalke 04 will measure forces with Borussia Moenchengladbach at Veltins-Arena for round 32 of Bundesliga on a match between two sides that want to grant their presence at the UEFA international competitions next season.

Schalke’s last weekend defeat at the hands of Stuttgart put an abrupt end to a seven-match undefeated run from the Die Knappen and that fact might have affected the team’s morale for the remaining matches of the season. Schalke lost 3-1 against a relegation-threatened Stuttgart and saw Bayer Leverkusen narrowing the gap separating both teams at the league table to four points.

Die Knappen’s next match against Borussia M’gladbach is of major importance for the Gelsenkirchen’s side, especially if one considers that their closest contenders - Leverkusen - will also have a considerably difficult match against Borussia Dortmund.

For next Sunday’s clash, Schalke’s head coach, Jens Keller, will still have to deal with a long list of injured players, since he will probably still not be able to count on the Austrian defender Christian Fuchs, on the Greek centre back Papadopoulos, on the Japanese wing back Atsuto Uchida, on the team’s captain Benedikt Höwedes, and on the German midfielder Christian Clemens.

As for Borussia M’gladbach, the historical German side is not enjoying the best of moments as they have only managed to grab two wins on their last five matches. Last weekend, Die Fohlen sucumbed at the hands of Freiburg at Mage Solar Stadion and continued their poor form away from home this season. After Borussia M’gladbach’s excellent streak back in October and November, the team has been baffled by inconsistency and embarked on a nine match row without a single win, which forced them to drop several places on the league table.

For next Sunday’s match, the Swiss manager Lucien Favre will probably still not be able to count on the Swedish defender Oscar Wendt, who is currently injured, and on the talented Swiss midfielder Granit Xhaka, who is suspended.

When both sides met last December at Borussia-Park, the home side obtained a precious 2-1, with goals from Raffael and Max Kruse, which allowed them to enjoy six wins in a row back then. Next Sunday’s match will certainly be a good opportunity for both sides to erase last weekend’s setbacks from their supporters’ minds, which will surely produce a very close match between two of the most interesting teams of Bundesliga this season.

Schalke 04

Stats: W-17 L-7 D-7

Recent Form - DWDWL

Borussia M’gladbach

Stats: W-14 L-10 D-7

Recent Form - LWWDL

Possible Line-ups

Schalke 04 (4-2-3-1) –  Fährmann - Hoogland - Ayan - Matip - Kolasinac - Neustäder - Boateng - Draxler - Meyer - Goretzka - Huntelaar

Borussia M’gladbach (4-4-2) - Ter Stegen - Jantschke - Brouwers - Dominguez - Daems - Nordtveit - Korb - Herrmann - Arango - Raffael - Kruse

Prediction: Schalke 1 Borussia M’gladbach 1