FC Schalke: If something feels different to you, it’s Benito Raman

FC Schalke fans have been waiting a long time to find someone who could just be a reliable threat to the opposing goal. We have that now, and the difference is in the air.

Early this week, my cohort here at Release the Knappen, Kevin, said that he felt a buzz in the air around FC Schalke, and I felt it too. Like there was just a positive sense of… something. Of course, winning always helps that, but it was something else. Something better than just a win. And then we both agreed on what it was—Benito Raman.

Obviously one guy doesn’t change the fate of the club, but Raman has done something that Schalke fans have been waiting for for years. He’s given us energy in the attack. True, sustainable energy.

Having weathered years of Guido Burgstaller and Mark Uth, who are valuable for their own faculties, it became clear that our strikers had a very specific prerogative, and Benito Raman has his own. He has speed. Blistering speed.

That speed over the top creates a whole new level of excitement because any ball lobbed over the top can become something. We don’t always have to have a slow build-up, or intricate attacking play which can derail at any moment.

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Sometimes we can just pop the ball long and watch Raman run.

We’ve been so dependent on Amine Harit for so long that every misstep from him feels like a huge setback for the attack, but again, Raman alleviates that too. He is remarkably secure with the ball, he is a quality finisher, he knows how to create and interchange with teammates. He just gets it.

And did I mention how fast he is?

These are the kinds of things that create a buzz within a fan base. When they see something they haven’t had in awhile and it starts paying almost immediate dividends, there is new excitement. New things to look forward to. We can look forward to each match knowing that there is a new element to this attack, such that two, three goals aren’t out of the question.

It wasn’t that long ago that Schalke often maxed out at one goal. Two was a magnificent day. With Raman, those days may be over. And right on schedule too.

One guy isn’t going to change the fate of the club, but he can start something great. He can inject something new. And that’s what Raman is doing.