Schalke 04: Jonjoe Kenny departure has clear and immediate solution

Schalke 04 is finally facing the very real future that they might not have Jonjoe Kenn much longer. Time to take immediate and specific action.

Schalke 04 could really go for some good news. Unfortunately, anything there just doesn’t seem to be anything positive coming. Sure, a result against Augsburg would qualify as good news, but we’re not there yet. Instead, we’re hearing about how Jonjoe Kenny is almost certainly on his way out of the club when his loan ends at the end of this season.

That’s a bummer. Big time. Jonjoe Kenny has been a fantastic addition to the club. His ability to play as both a right wingback and a traditional rightback has been such a lift, particularly in his attacking capacity, as the Royal Blues have been so short on attacking options in recent years.

His four goal contributions—one goal and three assists—are level with the venerable Bastian Oczipka and among the best on the whole goal-starved team.

Schalke shouldn’t stress about Jonjoe Kenny leaving

So yeah, it’s going to suck losing him. But it doesn’t have to be any worse of a situation than it already is. It’s not looking likely that Timo Becker is the solution, as he’s not exactly a favorite of David Wagner, so we have to look elsewhere.

And looking to the transfer market is never a good idea, seeing as how Die Knappen already needs to spend all of their miserable transfer budget on this attack. The last thing they need to worry about is spending anything on a defense that is actually in pretty good shape.

Which is why the solution isn’t outside of the squad at all.

Daniel Caligiuri is a servant to the club, he’s expressed an interest in staying in Gelsenkirchen, and he’s played the exact position that Jonjoe Kenny plays for years now. He only got moved out so he could play more of an attacking role, but as Kenny showed us, attack is often the best defense, and when you’ve got a good defense to guard your arse, you can get forward with more confidence.

I don’t see why Caligiuri can’t do that exact same job again. He’s done it before. Save money, keep the venerable Italian and that’s that.

Schalke has to be smart about how they move forward with their potential exits and arrivals and they don’t want to worry about this defense. Trust Caligiuri like he’s been trusted so many times before.