A first-half finish from Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting was enough to seal all three points for Schalke against a Hoffenheim side that will end the year in the bottom two.
Schalke were desperate to bring back the league form from early in the season, as a recent slide seen them slip to eighth. Despite that, and the defeat to FC Augsburg last time out, André Breitenreiter made just one change as Franco di Santo came in for Leroy Sané.
It was a contrasting feeling for Hoffenheim last weekend, who finally managed to notch up their first home win of the season. Unfortunately for Huub Stevens, Primin Schwegler was unable to feature due to injury. Sebastian Rudy replaced him, while Eduardo Vargas replaced Kevin Volland up-front.
Attacking opening
The side from Sinsheim had obviously taken confidence from that win, and it was no surprise to see them start off well. Vargas nipped in front of Joel Matip to reach a Jin-Su Kim cross, only to guide the ball just past the far post. It didn't take long for Schalke to issue a response with Leon Goretzka firing inches past the post from 20 yards.
Stevens' team were keen to sit back and hit Schalke on the break, which was working well early on. Tarik Elyounoussi looked particularly promising, along with Vargas, though there was a lack of support when counter attacking. The Royal Blues continued to press on with Goretzka firing another shot wide again, and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar forcing the first save of the game from Oliver Baumann.
Choupo-Moting gives Schalke the lead
Despite the even beginning, the deadlock was broken just before the half hour. It was a simple goal, and one which would have caused great frustration for Stevens. Johannes Geis picked the ball up on the right wing, far from his usual position, before picking out a perfect ball for Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting. The Cameroonian forward somehow managed to finish the move off, scrambling the ball into the net under pressure from Fabian Schär; the hosts were on course for a much-needed win.
Schär was being constantly tested by the home attack and the Swiss defender made a fantastic sliding tackle to prevent Huntelaar from running through on goal. Di Santo flicked a corner just wide of the near post at the end of the half, much to his dismay. Since the goal, Schalke were well worth their lead and deserved to go into the break a goal to the good.
Hoffenheim looking lively
Just like the first half, it was a cross that created the first chance of the period for Hoffenheim. A wonderful run and cross from Pavel Kaderabeck managed to find a clever dart by Jonathan Schmid, but the Frenchman's flicked effort went wide of the mark. That was a flash in the pan moment, however, as Schalke quickly retained possession to kill any momentum.
Stevens needed a reaction and called on Volland after an hour, hoping to provide some more support to Vargas. The whole idea seemed to be to get in amongst the hosts and disrupt the play, with both Rudy and Tobias Strobl picking up bookings within a minute of each other. That didn't translate into a more attacking approach, however.
Late chances aren't taken
For all their promise, Sead Kolasinac almost killed the game off with a freak goal. The Bosnian, who scored his first Schalke goal last weekend, had his cross deflected onto the post with Baumann well beaten. That did seem to spur on the visitors and Vargas had a great chance to level the match. The Chilean collected the ball on the edge of the area before turning to shoot, only to fire over the bar - a massive opportunity gone begging.
Hoffenheim failed to muster any real chances of note after that, meaning they came away from Gelsenkirchen with nothing to show for their effort. The hosts got a much needed three points, although they are still likely to end the weekend outside of the European spots. All in all, there is plenty of work for both these sides to do in the Rückrunde.