A late strike from Maxim Choupo-Moting has given Schalke 04 a 1-0 win over APOEL in Thursday night's Europa League Group K clash at the Veltins Arena.
The hosts came within a whisker of breaking the deadlock two in minutes when Joel Matip peeled away from his marker and got on to the end of a corner but his header was acrobatically saved by Boy Waterman.
Moments later it was Choupo-Moting's turn to threaten after he made himself some space around the penalty spot and connected with a free kick, but again the APOEL goalkeeper was equal to it.
An exciting first half saw both sides weigh in with increasingly dangerous chances but, surprisingly, it was goalless at the break.
Though APOEL enjoyed several chances, most notably through the likes of Kostas Charalambidis and Pieros Soteriou, it was mostly one way traffic for Schalke, who nevertheless could not get past an inspired Waterman.
Eventually the Bundesliga side succeeded in breaking the deadlock, as well as APOEL hearts, just four minutes before time, thanks to Choupo-Moting firing home a ball provided by Sascha Riether.
It could have been even worse for the Cypriot outfit when Inaki Astiz gifted the opposition a penalty with a handball inside the box, but Waterman pulled off an acrobatic save to deny Dennis Aogo's effort from the spot.
Giuseppe Labellarte
