Schalke vs Dortmund: Ahmed Kutucu time is coming, but not now

Schalke needs to ‘”free” Ahmed Kutucu, but while that time is coming, the return at the Revierderby might not be the best time to do so.

Schalke has a lot of questions regarding personnel coming up for the Revierderby, but few selection questions are more important than what happens up top. Who does David Wagner choose to be his starting striker?

For some, the answer is Ahmed Kutucu. Because the answer has always been Ahmed Kutucu, even though David Wagner doesn’t seem to agree with that premise.

Our friends over at the SchalkeAmerica podcast own the #FreeKutucu movement, a movement we (and apparently Salif Sane) also support, because it’s hard to not support it. Who doesn’t want to see Ahmed Kutucu given his first Bundesliga start of the season? I still have to double-check every time I type that—he really hasn’t started a match yet.

Ahmed Kutucu needs to start for Schalke… just not quite yet

But coming back from over a month out of action in the Revierderby… that isn’t the time to free Ahmed Kutucu. Mostly because what this comes down to is choosing between him and Benito Raman and, right now, Raman is more seasoned, more reliable, and I trust him more.

Now don’t get me wrong, if Raman starts turning poor, let Kutucu in their ASAP and let him continue on as the starter in the following week, but given the similar playing styles between Kutucu and Raman, you can’t really start both of them unless you plan on honing your attacking push into a counter-attacking punch.

Which isn’t the greatest idea, since we should be aiming to maintain some semblance of control, not turning this into a back and forth, slapdash match.

We need, as shaky as they are, a Guido Burgstaller or Michael Gregoritsch to maintain some kind of presence in the box, to allow Raman to float around him. Kutucu can’t fill that role, and unless we’re ready for him to replace Raman, which I don’t think we are just yet (again, that could change really quicky).

I look at this almost like the start of a new season. We need to first trust the guys that lifted us in the first place, of which Raman is included. And the prospect of kicking Gregoritsch back into gear is so tantalizing that we kind of have to try, don’t we?

Free Kutucu is coming to fruition, I’m just not game for it coming right this moment.