As much as Miron Muslic is excited about meeting Jose Mourinho, the Schalke head coach says the Portuguese and Real Madrid will not distract his side from their more important game coming up eight days later. Schalkes season starts away to fourth-tier Hallescher in the German Cup on August 24 (19:45 BST), making the privilege of hosting the 15-time European champions an important chance to prepare for that tie.Hes a great coach who has had an absolutely fantastic career, Muslic said of Mourinho. Were already thinking about our game in Halle. Well have to be ready for that.Theres so much we can learn from games like these and its also Reals last friendly before they begin their La Liga campaign.Madrid beat promoted Deportivo 1-0 away through Brahim Diazs goal during first-half added time on Wednesday.The team is progressing in every aspect but the difficulty of the matches, as weve planned with this goal in mind, is increasing, Mourinho told Madrid TV.A positive thing is that the team is growing. Were taking it step by step and, next week, well be serious.The first competitive match of Mourinhos second spell in charge is at Espanyol in La Liga on August 22 (20:30 BST).Table of ContentsSchalke v Madrid team newsSchalke v Real Madrid predicted line-upsWhere to watch Schalke v Madrid: TV and online streamsSchalke v Real Madrid statsSchalke v Madrid predictionSchalke v Madrid team newsNew signing Robin Gosens took part in most of Schalke training on Wednesday following a thigh injury the wideman sustained earlier this month.Captain Kenan Karaman has also been back in training, having suffered a bruised pelvis in the 3-0 home defeat to Atalanta last Saturday.Junior Dina Ebimbe has been training individually because of an ankle knock the new winger picked up against La Dea.Defender Eder Militao, midfielder Thiago Pitarch and forward Rodrygo are all out for Madrid with knee injuries, as is Ferland Mendy (tendon).Forward Endrick (hamstring) did not join Madrids training on Friday, but midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni (calf) and defender Raul Asencio (muscle) participated in part of the session.Schalke v Real Madrid predicted line-upsSchalke starting XI: Loris Karius, Timo Becker, Mertcan Ayhan, Hasan Kurucay, Junior Dina Ebimbe, Soufiane El-Faouzi, Satoshi Tanaka, Vitalie Becker, Kenan Karaman, Adil Aouchiche, Junior AdamuReal Madrid starting XI: Andrii Lunin, Denzel Dumfries, Antonio Rudiger, Dean Huijsen, Alvaro Carreras, Brahim Diaz, Bernardo Silva, Arda Guler, Eduardo Camavinga, Vinicius Junior, Carlos EspiWhere to watch Schalke v Madrid: TV and online streamsKick-off on Sunday is at 16:00 BST (10:00 ET / 07:00 PT). Live coverage in the UK is on DAZN, which costs �15.99 a month, with live streaming on the DAZN app.Schalke v Real Madrid statsSchalke suffered a 4-2 defeat in their only meeting with a Spanish side last season, Moussa Sylla and Mauro Zalazar scoring in front of almost 46,000 fans in a friendly in July 2025 in GelsenkirchenTheir last competitive meeting with a Spanish team was against Madrid in the Champions League last 16 in March 2015, winning 4-3 away but exiting 5-4 on aggregateThat is Schalkes only win over Madrid, losing 6-1 at home and 3-1 away at the same stage of the 2013/14 competition in their other encountersMadrid all-time top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice in three of those matches and once in another for a total of seven goals against SchalkeIn competitive games against Spanish teams, Schalkes record is W8 D7 L12, last prevailing in such a match with a 3-1 home victory over Valencia in the 2010/11 Champions League last 16 to complete a 4-2 aggregate winPromoted as champions last season, The Royal Blues won three more matches (21) than any other team in the second tier and had the best defensive record by eight goals, conceding 31 times across 34 league gamesLoris Karius kept two more clean sheets (13) than any other goalkeeper in the division, twice helping Schalke keep four clean sheets across five consecutive matches in the leagueThe last three Spanish clubs to visit Schalke competitively have won, including Athletic Club triumphing 4-2 in the 2011/12 Europa League quarter-finals as part of a tie they won 6-4 on aggregateLos Blancos competitive record against German teams is W44 D16 L26, although they lost both such games last season with a 2-1 home defeat and 4-3 away loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-finalsThey had won their preceding four such matches as part of a nine-game unbeaten run against German clubs (W7 D2)Schalke v Madrid predictionPrediction: Schalke 1-1 MadridThe proximity to meaningful action could produce a tight match reflecting Schalkes defensive rigour and Mourinhos pragmatic tactics. The hosts will be keen to at least avoid successive heavy defeats. Topics Antonio Rudiger Aurelien Tchouameni Bundesliga Dean Huijsen FC Schalke 04 Federico Valverde Jose Mourinho Jude Bellingham Kylian Mbapp LaLiga Manuel Pellegrini Real Madrid CF Trent Alexander-Arnold Vinicius Jr Vinicius Junior Yan Diomande Add us as a preferred source on Google If you enjoy reading this article, you can help support our independent football journalism by adding 101 Great Goals as a preferred source You Should Also Read Chelsea v Sociedad: Expected line-ups, where to watch, stats and preview Mitch Fretton 14th August, 2026 Why Arsenal boss Arteta wants to sign Jarell Quansah Ben Miller 14th August, 2026 Brilliant Brahim solo goal gives Real Madrid friendly win Tom Rostance 12th August, 2026 How to watch La Liga 2026/27: TV channels, streams for Spanish football in the UK and US Ben Miller 12th August, 2026 Deportivo vs Madrid live: Confirmed teams and full line ups Ben Miller 12th August, 2026 Rodri hopes Barcelona can agree fee with City to avoid return to Manchester Jon Fisher 12th August, 2026
