Schalke 2019/2020 Home Shirt

SCHALKE - HOME SHIRT 2019/2020Schalke are one of German football's great working-class clubs, founded in 1904 in Gelsenkirchen in the industrial Ruhr. Nicknamed Die Knappen (the Miners) and Die Königsblauen (the Royal Blues) after the region's coal-mining roots, they play at the Veltins-Arena. Seven-time German champions, though their last title came back in 1958, they share a fierce Revierderby rivalry with Borussia Dortmund.The 2019/2020 season, during which this understated royal-blue home shirt was worn, promised much under new manager David Wagner, with Schalke sitting in the top four at the turn of the year. Then it fell apart: their last league win came on matchday 18 in mid-January, after which they went 16 games without a victory to finish 12th in the Bundesliga on 39 points (9 wins, 12 draws, 13 defeats).The slump was worsened by the COVID-19 shutdown, which forced Schalke to play their final nine matches behind closed doors, several ending in heavy defeats. They fared better in the DFB-Pokal, reaching the quarter-finals before going down 1-0 at home to eventual winners Bayern Munich, a Joshua Kimmich strike settling it.Midfielder Suat Serdar top-scored with seven goals across the season. Austrian striker Guido Burgstaller and young Moroccan playmaker Amine Harit chipped in, while American Weston McKennie and Turkish defender Ozan Kabak caught the eye. Goalkeeper Alexander Nübel, meanwhile, agreed a move to Bayern Munich, departing at season's end and underlining a difficult year for the Royal Blues.Follow the club on X: @s04