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At the same time as the last season game of FC Schalke 04 in Freiburg, fans of Schalke demonstrated at the arena in Gelsenkirchen against the club leadership
Credit: dpa / Fabian Strauch
Around 1000 Schalke fans demonstrate against the club leadership. At the center of the criticism is supervisory board chairman Tönnies. In the meantime, those responsible are taking the first personal consequences after the crash in the league.
ITheir team could not support them anyway due to the corona regulations, anyway they played away at SC Freiburg. Nevertheless, on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. around 1,000 fans from FC Schalke 04 came to their club’s home ground – they came to demonstrate.
“Schalke is not a slaughterhouse – against the disassembly of our club” was the motto of the demo, with which the supporters wanted to draw attention to grievances and undesirable developments in the club and in the meat company of the chairman of the supervisory board, Clemens Tönnies.
They formed a human chain around the club premises at Berger Feld and the arena. Tönnies, the 64-year-old company boss, came under strong pressure after massive coronavirus infections occurred in employees of his company in Rheda-Wiedenbrück.
Clear messages
Schalke fans placed their messages on banners in several places on Saturday. “Our board – a social and moral flop!”, They complained. “The biggest bulldozer doesn’t help anymore! Tönnies out! ”Was a demand elsewhere.
Katharina Strohmeyer, co-organizer of the protests, had previously told WELT that Clemens Tönnies would be perceived as irresponsible and that Schalke would be ashamed of the club. “Every time” when the occurrence of Tönnies meat was reported, it said: “Tönnies, the Schalke boss.” That was a “huge damage to the image,” commented Strohmeyer.
A protest banner on the Schalke 04 stadium grounds
Source: AFP / SASCHA SCHUERMANN
The aim is to replace Tönnies at the head of the Schalke supervisory board. “Many say: Finally it starts, something finally happens,” said Strohmeyer. “I think the club is giving an increasingly disastrous picture. And in the course of this season, the barrel overflowed. “
One of the points of criticism is the exercise of office by Tönnies. “As chairman of the supervisory board, he has to set the rough direction and a long-term line, but otherwise he keeps out of the work of the board. But he does not. He constantly interferes, ”moaned Strohmeyer.
Club separates from athletics coaches
As far as the club’s performances in the Bundesliga are concerned, according to media reports, those responsible have apparently drawn the first conclusions. This is how Schalke separated from the athletics and fitness trainers Bob Schoos and Klaus Luisser. Werner Leuthard, who is considered a fitness specialist in the league, will take over the tasks in the future. The 58-year-old already worked for Schalke under ex-coach Felix Magath.
Schalke had to cope with numerous injuries due to injuries in the season that ended on Saturday. At times, coach David Wagner was not available to up to ten professionals, which led to a crash in the table in the second half of the season.
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