Schalke 04 vs Sparta Praha - Petr Jiracek expects tough time for Sparta Prague

Posted Thursday, October 22, 2015 by PA

Sparta Prague midfielder Petr Jiracek is wary of the threat posed by German opponents Schalke in Thursday's Europa League clash at the Veltins-Arena but believes the Czech side can match them.

The 29-year-old former Hamburg and Wolfsburg man spent almost four years playing in the Bundesliga before making the move back to his native country when he joined Sparta this summer - making the trip to Schalke on occasion - and he knows the Group K leaders will be tough to play against.

The Czech Republic international told www.sparta.cz: "I played there three or four times, but the memories are not really nice, I remember we conceded four goals a couple of times."

But this time Jiracek is confident the result can be much better for last season's Czech Liga runners-up, as he added: "It's up to us.

"Schalke are huge favourites for sure, but we are able to make things interesting there."

Sparta sit two points behind Thursday's opponents after a 2-0 victory over APOEL last time out and an opening 1-1 draw at Asteras - on the back of two 4-0 league wins which propelled them to the top of the table and has given them confidence.

Jiracek said: "We know we can play well against strong opponents. Anything can happen and we can't go there thinking about how tough it will be. Yeah, they're strong, but we'll do our best as well."

Schalke, who have collected maximum points from comfortable wins against both Asteras and APOEL in the group stage so far, host the Prague outfit after losing just one of their last eight matches in all competitions.

Andre Breitenreiter, who will be without his biggest threat Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (hip), knows they have a match on their hands against Sparta.

He told www.schalke04.de: "He (Huntelaar) still has a little pain in the hip, but it is not a serious injury. We won't take any chances."

He added: "We are the favourites. We have a home game and want to win.

"We know that we meet on an absolute top team. Prague are leaders in the Czech Republic and also had a good start in the Europa League.

"Prague defend very compact and have good processes in the offensive game. They often play a 4-1-4-1 system, which often involves a fast tempo.

"Especially in front of the left wing....there they have Martin Frydek and Ladislav Crejci (who have) much quality and pace. We will have to be on guard."