Dutchman Huub Stevens, aka "the Growling Dog from Kerkrade," is best known in Germany as the author of the result-oriented aphorism "The nil is what counts."

So the defensively-minded Stevens was predictably grouchy after watching his Royal Blues concede a pair of goals to one of the Bundesliga's worst attacking sides.

"We were laughable in one-to-one situations," the coach told reporters after Schalke's 2-1 loss to Kaiserslautern on Saturday. "The only logical result was for Kaiserslautern to leave the pitch as worthy winners."

That analysis contained Stevens' entire footballing philosophy in a nutshell: keep things tight at the back, win your challenges and good things will happen. Ahead of the Lautern match, Stevens had called upon his charges to channel their inner "dirtbag."

It's a formula familiar from the past, most notably 1997, when a gritty Stevens-led Schalke side nicknamed the "Eurofighters" won the UEFA Cup. That's the biggest triumph in the club's recent history, and fans may have been forgiven for revisiting fond memories, especially as Steven's second tenure with Schalke began with a 2-1 win in Hamburg.

But in truth, the Hamburg and Lautern matches weren't all that different. Both were relatively ugly affairs that could have gone either way.

Thus it's legitimate to ask: what is Schalke's plan for the future? And can the current coach possibly lead the way?

Playing it safe

If Schalke commercial manager Horst Heldt has a favorite Radiohead song, it's likely "No Surprises."

Roughly two weeks ago, Heldt announced he was bringing back Stevens, who left Schalke in 2002, thusly: "We didn't think it was right to get into any experiments. We wanted security and stability."

Heldt was forced to act quickly after Ralf Ragnick suddenly quit, citing burn-out syndrome. But no sooner had Stevens' appointment been announced than skeptics began questioning whether the "Growling Dog" was really a clever replacement for the strategist known as the "Professor."

It's been a strange couple of years for folks in Gelsenkirchen - even by Schalke's turbulent standards. In 2009, old-school fitness freak Felix Magath was brought in fresh from his title-winning season in Wolfsburg.

Magath led the Royal Blues to a second-place finish and had them on their way to the German Cup last season, but he rubbed too many people in management, and too many of Schalke's notoriously vocal supporters, the wrong way.

Enter the more cerebral and fan-friendly Rangnick, who was also on his second stint with the club. He made it sound as though Schalke were going to try to emulate rival Dortmund's emphasis on youth and attacking football, before yielding to the even more old-school Stevens.

With Schalke journeying through their own past, fans could be forgiven for wondering whether Jörg Berger (1993-6) or Udo Lattek (1992-3) are up next, and whether the team will soon be fielding a sweeper.

Mixed Bag

Schalke's current squad is a motley, if gifted assortment, reflecting the club's lack of coaching continuity.

On the one hand, there are the big-name and, in some cases, aging signings of the past several years: strikers Raul and Klaas Jan Huntelaar, creative midfielder Jefferson Farfan and defender Christoph Metzelder.

Then there are the youth guns: Benedikt Höwedes, Julian Draxler, Ralf Fährmann and Lewis Holtby. It’s an enviable crop most clubs would love to have - but there’s a nagging suspicion Schalke is not getting all they can out of them. Holtby, in particular, seems not to have found his role.

The son of a British serviceman developed into one of Germany's top midfield prospects last season while out on loan to Mainz. But while the 21-year-old dribbling wizard continues to excel for Germany's youth national team, he's faltered this campaign for the Royal Blues and was substituted out at half time against Kaiserslautern.

"In my club, I have to play defensive midfield and am not allowed to leave that position," Holtby explained by way of complaint before this weekend.

Schalke have a middling track record of getting the most of their young players. The most glaring recent mistake was allowing midfield sensation - and Gelsenkirchen native - Mesut Özil, now of Real Madrid, to leave for Bremen in 2008.

Breeding and using fresh talent is going to be crucial as Schalke struggle to get out from under some 200 million euros ($275 million) of debt. The club aims to be back in the black by 2025.

It will be interesting to see how Stevens, always prone to rely on veteran players, fits into this plan.

Despite all the confusions, Schalke remain one of the Bundesliga's biggest clubs, and it's easy to imagine their qualifying for European competition this season. After all, Stevens is a coach who knows how to get teams near the top, if only rarely to the actual summit.

But it's hard to see them mounting a serious challenge for their first German title in more than fifty years. Unfortunately for the Royal Blue faithful, Stevens' team has a decidedly been-there, done-that feel about them.

Author: Jefferson Chase
Editor: Matt Hermann