Bayern’s hunger takes on promoted Schalke’s elation

Bayern’s first away game of the new Bundesliga season takes them to Gelsenkirchen as they face promoted Schalke on Saturday (kick-off at 18:30 CEST, live coverage on fcbayern.com and in the FC Bayern app with our text commentary and free web radio). Here’s all you need to know ahead of the Matchday 2 fixture in our preview.

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Three wins across three different competitions to kick off 2026/27 means Bayern head to the Ruhr district full of confidence. Vincent Kompany’s men lifted the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup with a 2-1 victory a short distance down the road at Borussia Dortmund, before beginning their Bundesliga and DFB Cup title defences with wins over VfB Stuttgart (5-1) and Osnabrück (4-1) respectively. Those results suggest there’s a clear favourite against the top-flight returnees. “We have that role, but we can’t believe in it. You don’t automatically take a good performance against Osnabrück or Stuttgart with you. A match always starts from zero. They can’t be hungrier than us, even if they’re really excited after three years away [in Bundesliga 2],” said Kompany at his pre-match press conference.

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Last weekend’s victory showed just how hungry the defending champions are to retain their crown this term. The result ensured Bayern begin the season top of the table, where they have sat for an unprecedented 67 consecutive matchdays. A continuation of that run is what the team want, even at this early stage of the campaign. “As ever for us, it’s about three points. We want to do our job,” Kompany had previously stressed after the midweek cup game. Bayern’s recent record against Schalke also bodes well, having won the last 12 meetings by an aggregate score of 42-2.

Read more from Kompany’s press conference:

Opponent: Schalke

There is real elation around Gelsenkirchen as they prepare to host a top-flight match for the first time in three years. “The Bundesliga is returning to the Veltins-Arena. That’s a special thing for us and our fans, who’ve had to wait a long time for this,” stated Schalke coach Miron Muslić. He described facing Bayern as “the greatest challenge” but that his team is really up for the game. “We’re prepared. We put in a lot last year to be able to be in this competition. Now we need to test ourselves against the best. We want to put in the maximum for this game and are excited for our first Bundesliga game at home with the fans,” Muslić continued.

Alongside a solid defence, it was the fervent support at home that underpinned Schalke’s promotion push last season. An average crowd of over 60,000 watched their Bundesliga 2 fixtures at the Veltins-Arena in 2025/26. Their sole home defeat of last term came in September against Holstein Kiel (1-0). Since then they’re unbeaten in 14 competitive fixtures on their own patch (W11, D3). One Bayern player with some of the freshest memories of facing that crowd is Jonas Urbig from a couple of years ago. “I played there with Köln. It’ll be a heated atmosphere. It’ll be a great game. It’s great that Schalke are back in the Bundesliga,” the goalkeeper enthused.

Read more about Schalke in our opposition analysis:

Team news

Bayern remain without Serge Gnabry, with Kompany hoping for his return next week. Jamal Musiala has trained with the team all week, but a decision will be made late on whether he travels to Gelsenkirchen.

Ron Schallenberg is suspended for Schalke, with Muslić confirming that Satoshi Tanaka will replace him in central midfield. Captain Kenan Karaman remains a doubt with a hip issue, opening the door for a debut for deadline day signing Hee Chan Hwang.

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What the coaches say