Andre Breitenreiter made the perfect start to his first Bundesliga campaign with Schalke 04 thanks to a comfortable 3-0 victory over Werder Bremen this afternoon.
The visitors were on top from the first whistle, but Breitenreiter was dealt an early blow when former Manchester City defender Matija Nastasic limped off with an injury.
Werder almost gifted Schalke the advantage midway through the first half when Assani Lukimya-Mulongoti's clearance drifted just a few inches wide of the post.
Schalke continued to pile on the pressure, and only a save from Felix Wiedwald prevented Leon Goretzka from breaking the deadlock with a header.
Lukimya-Mulongoti's nervy moment in defence was a sign of what was to come later in the first half as Schalke took the lead when Theodor Gebre Selassie somehow managed to lob Wiedwald while attempting to win the ball on the edge of his own box.
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The lead should have been doubled early in the second half when Klaas-Jan Huntelaar found a yard of space in the box, but he could only hit a tame effort straight at Wiedwald.
Despite struggling to offer much threat going forward for much of the game, Werder had a great chance to get back on level terms just before the hour mark when Fin Bartels dragged a shot wide after a patient move from the hosts.
Schalke quickly took control of the match again when Joel Matip released Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, who kept his composure to slot home his side's second of the afternoon.
Werder should have reduced the deficit when Ulisses Garcia skipped a couple of challenges to burst into the box, but Ralf Fahrmann passed his first real test of the afternoon by pushing a low shot to safety.
Schalke wrapped up the win in style late on when Leroy Sane capitalised on a tiring Werder defence to bring the ball forward on a long run before picking the perfect pass to allow Huntelaar to convert from close range.
Callum Mulvihill
