- 1 Schalke 04 vs Real Madrid: Mourinho fine-tunes the details in Gelsenkirchen
- 2 Schalke 04: ambitious newcomers, but the step up is biting already
- 3 Real Madrid: a full-strength attack, but the back line still needs work
- 4 Football Prediction Schalke 04 vs Real Madrid
- 5 First things first, a word on our free predictions
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information moves fast
- 8 Your part
- 9 Responsible gambling first
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About the images…
Schalke 04 vs Real Madrid: Mourinho fine-tunes the details in Gelsenkirchen 
62,000 seats and 25 years of history. The Veltins-Arena hosts Real Madrid’s final warm-up match on Sunday 16 August at 17h.
Schalke 04 are also playing their last dress rehearsal. The Royal Blues face Hallescher in the German Cup on 24 August, before their Bundesliga opener against Augsburg on 30.
The German club are back in the top flight after winning the 2. Bundesliga last season. It is their first campaign at the highest level since 2022-23.
Real Madrid, meanwhile, are starting a new era. Jose Mourinho is back on the Madrid bench for a second spell, and this game will offer the first look at Kylian Mbappe under his orders.
The French striker is back from the World Cup and rejoins the squad in Gelsenkirchen. Madrid’s schedule has also been adjusted: the club secured a delay to their first La Liga fixture and will start against Real Sociedad on 26 August.
The stadium is far from a happy hunting ground for the Merengues. Real won 6-1 there in February 2014, then 2-0 the following year, both times in the Champions League round of 16.
The two pre-seasons are sending opposite signals. Schalke come in off a 0-3 defeat to Atalanta after four straight wins, while Real are on a run of two victories.
A newly promoted German side against a Madrid squad rebuilt with six new arrivals leaves little room for doubt.
Schalke 04: ambitious newcomers, but the step up is biting already
Schalke have played six matches this summer, winning four of them. The record looks decent, but the standard of opposition tells another story.
Their wins came against Erzgebirge Aue (4-2), Metalist Kharkiv (0-2), Fagiano Okayama (3-1) and Hessen Kassel (0-5). None of those sides operate anywhere near Real Madrid’s level.
Their only test against a major European outfit ended badly. Atalanta left Gelsenkirchen with a straightforward 3-0 win.
Miron Muslic has built his squad around six summer signings, including Satoshi Tanaka, Junior Dina Ebimbe and Junior Adamu. Seven players have gone the other way, among them Ilyes Hamache.
Tanaka should start in midfield, with Loris Karius in goal. The German keeper remains one of the most recognisable figures in this side.
Up front, Edin Dzeko has extended his stay by a year and is set to lead the line. Well into his forties, the Bosnian still carries the weight of the attack.
Adrian Gantenbein is the only confirmed absentee for this one. Muslic therefore has almost a full squad available for this final test.
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Real Madrid: a full-strength attack, but the back line still needs work 
Real have played four pre-season matches, with three wins and a draw. They have scored in every single one.
It started with a 4-1 win over Leganes, then a 2-2 draw against Fiorentina. Two more wins followed, at Ferencvaros (1-2) and away to Deportivo in La Coruna (0-1).
Six new arrivals have come in this summer: Yan Diomande, Marc Cucurella, Carlos Espi, Denzel Dumfries, Ibrahima Konate and Bernardo Silva. Vinicius Junior has also signed a contract extension.
Diomande, Cucurella and Konate could all make their first appearances in Gelsenkirchen, most likely from the bench. Mourinho is keeping a few cards back for the league opener.
The Madrid treatment room is still packed. Thibaut Courtois, Aurelien Tchouameni, Eder Militao, Raul Asencio, Rodrygo and Ferland Mendy are all out, with Endrick also sidelined by a muscle problem.
Andriy Lunin therefore keeps goal behind a defence that has been heavily reshuffled. That is exactly the area which shipped two against Fiorentina and one at Deportivo.
Up front, though, the firepower is intact. Mbappe, Vinicius, Brahim Diaz and Arda Guler give Real an attacking threat Schalke have not faced at any point this summer.
Expected Schalke 04 line-up: Karius ; Becker, Katic, Kurucay, Gosens ; Schallenberg, Tanaka, Gruger ; Porath, Dzeko, Karaman
Expected Real Madrid line-up: Lunin ; Dumfries, Rudiger, Huijsen, Carreras ; Bernardo, Valverde ; Diaz, Guler, Vinicius ; Mbappe
Football Prediction Schalke 04 vs Real Madrid
Our prediction: Real Madrid to win and over 2.5 goals in the match
Five of Schalke’s six pre-season games have gone over two goals, and the only European-level opponent they have faced this summer left with a 3-0 win. The German defence has not yet been properly tested at this level.
Real have scored in all four of their summer outings and get Mbappe back for this final check-up. With Vinicius, Guler and Brahim Diaz around him, Madrid’s attack does not depend on one man.
Madrid also continue to concede at regular intervals, with two goals against Fiorentina and a back line reshaped by the absences of Militao and Asencio. A Real win in a game with three goals or more is the scenario that fits both teams best.
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