Schalke face Galatasaray at the Veltins Arena on Tuesday, Nov. 6. Here’s all the info you need to watch.
Although they were certainly good enough to challenge for the Bundesliga’s European spots, Schalke’s second-place finish last season flattered them immensely, coming courtesy of a spate of scrappy last-minute equalizers, long-range goals and extraordinary misses by their opponents. Schalke’s luck has run out domestically in the current campaign, but the sort of cagey, safety-first soccer that 33-year-old coach Domenico Tedesco specializes in — there have been only three goals in Schalke’s Champions League games so far — seems well suited to European football. That, plus a favorable draw putting them in the competition’s weakest group, mean that the German side have a good chance of progressing into the knock-out rounds.
Back in the tournament after a two-season absence, Galatasaray have been Champions League regulars since the 1990s. The Turkish champions, who won a record 21st league title last season, have twice made it to the quarter-finals, knocking out today’s opponents on the way to their most recent appearance in the last 16 back in 2013.
The Istanbul club still have plenty of recognizable faces in their squad. Fullback Yuto Nagatomo and midfielder Sofiane Feghouli previously had long spells spent at Inter Milan and Valencia respectively. Ex-Manchester City star Fernando will sit at the base of their midfield, while between the posts will be Uruguayan keeper Fernando Muslera, whose awful error gifted France a goal in the quarter-finals of this summer’s World Cup. The Galatasaray’s preparations for today’s match could have been better, however: they let a two-goal lead slip in the Intercontinental Derby with Fenerbahce on Friday, which ended with a melee in the center-circle following the final whistle.
The Champions League match between Schalke and Galatasaray will be broadcast live on Bleacher Report. Live streaming is available on B/R Live, which you can access with your cable or satellite subscriptions, either online or through the Bleacher Report app.
Date: Tuesday, Nov. 6
Start time: 3 p.m. ET
Location: Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Stadium: Veltins Arena
TV Info: Bleacher Report
Live Stream: B/R Live | Fubo.TV. Sign up for a free seven-day trial here
With just one point separating the two teams going into this game, the result here will probably determine which of them makes it to the knock-out rounds.