"Rewarded at last": Liberation strike for Schalke

The first victory under Thomas Reis: FC Schalke confirmed the performance improvement of the previous week and achieved the hoped-for liberation strike in the 1-0 home win against Mainz. Even ex-Bochum coach Reis can breathe a sigh of relief after seven defeats in a row: "The team has finally been rewarded for the effort it has put in over the past few weeks," said the 49-year-old. His opposite number Bo Svensson is much less satisfied with his team's performance: "That was a very disappointing performance overall." For Mainz, it is already the third defeat in a row in the final spurt before the World Cup in Qatar.