Schalke coach Markus Weinzierl admits they've been hit hard by their summer sales.
Schalke lost Joel Matip to Liverpool on a Bosman and Leroy Sane to Manchester City in a big money deal.
Weinzierl laments: "Last season we were up 50 per cent on everything thanks to Matip and the playmaking of Sane.
"Since then, we have lost two very important pillars."
Schalke used the €50 million raised on Sane's sale to sign seven players last summer.