Schalke boss Thomas Reis laments 'careless' opening goal after defeat to Freiburg
- Heinrich Griessel
- 31 October 2022
New Schalke head coach Thomas Reis endured a difficult first game in charge as he oversaw a 2-0 Bundesliga defeat at home to SC Freiburg on Sunday.
Reis, who only took the reins of the Royal Blues on Thursday, has a massive challenge ahead as he aims to lead his charges out of the Bundesliga relegation zone.
The defeat to Freiburg saw Schalke remain rooted to the bottom of the table after 12 games, as they have managed only six points this season.
Speaking after the game, Reis expressed his frustration with the opening goal his side conceded, as he felt it was an unforced error from his defenders.
"We needed the first few minutes to implement our pressing, but it didn't work too well," Reis told the official Schalke 04 website.
"After that we adjusted and then came into the game more and were able to force Freiburg to turn to long balls. We knew that they wanted to move the ball a lot from side to side, which is what we had problems with initially.
"It is really annoying when you play messily when trying to transition into attack and the final ball isn't there. We could have created more chances.
"We defended carelessly for the first goal. We have to win that duel. We dropped back into the box and gave him the opportunity to have a shot on goal from a good position.
"In the second half, Freiburg kept us busy. The key moment was the penalty, which was very unlucky. I'm annoyed by the way it came about.
"I saw a team that put everything into the game. If we had managed to score, for example with the Tom Krauß chance, then it is possible that the game would've been more open.
"Finally, you have to say that it was not an undeserved win for Freiburg."
Reis will have his second chance for a first win as Schalke boss on Saturday when they travel to Werder Bremen.
