Three and a half weeks after the end of the season, Schalke's coach Miron Muslic spoke publicly for the first time in Austria. The greatest praise came from the German record national player Lothar Matthäus. "What Vincent Kompany did for Bayern Munich, he did for Schalke", said Lothar Matthäus about the coach of the Bundesliga returner FC Schalke 04. "He united the team, brought the club together. Great praise", added Matthäus. He sat next to Muslic at a talk show of the Austrian TV channel Servus TV, which belongs to the Red Bull Empire. It was the first time that Schalke's coach appeared in public since his entry into the Golden Book of the city of Gelsenkirchen on May 18. For three and a half weeks, Muslic only posted a few pictures on social media, whether from a family visit to Bihac, Bosnia, his youngest son's birthday party, or his adopted home in the Salzkammergut in Austria. A long family trip is not on the agenda, as the summer holidays in Austria do not start until July. The last doubts about whether the sought-after Muslic, who rose with Schalke, will also stay in the Bundesliga, have disappeared at the Royal Blues. The exit clause in Muslic's contract has expired this summer (Bild reported first), almost all open coaching positions at clubs that could pay a high sum are already occupied. A surprise is no longer to be feared by Schalke. Furthermore, the 43-year-old has reaffirmed his commitment to the Royal Blues. An example? "I feel very fulfilled", said Muslic. "To be able to train Schalke, one must understand the people, the city, the history. One must understand how tough this place is. I have many connections and parallels with the people from Gelsenkirchen. We have had many hardships in our lives, but we have always found a way to make the best of it." During the Bosnian War, Muslic fled with his family to Austria, where he was a teenager. And now he is a Bundesliga coach, after having succeeded for a year at Schalke. He is aware that the pressure is now completely different, that even losing streaks can occur. His worst drought at Schalke was so far five games in a row without a win (three draws, two losses), a mini-mini-negative series, no crisis. "We all have credit as a team, as a collective. But this is quickly exhausted if it doesn't work out. On this level, performance is what matters. Nobody is interested in what happened last week or three weeks ago", explained Muslic, adding: "I have no fear of that, just as little as I do of taking over Schalke a year ago after the historically worst season in the club's history." His approach to the Bundesliga: "We want to establish ourselves in the Bundesliga, which will be an XXL challenge. We want to face it courageously, bring the Schalke DNA to the pitch: aggressive, intense, courageous. And that regardless of whether we play at home or away." Schalke as a giant To achieve this, emotional control is primarily necessary. Just like during the entire 2nd league season. Withstanding pressure is part of Schalke: "Schalke is a giant. It's not emotional, but highly emotional. The value of the club in the lives of the people is unimaginable. We have to