Ultimate Schalke dream team - Neuer and Ozil in, no room for Raul

Manuel Neuer graduated from Schalke's youth academy, making his senior debut for the club in 2005 at the age of just 19.

The German goalkeeper made 156 senior appearances for the club between 2005 and 2011, winning the Germany League Cup in 2005 and the 2010-11 DFB Pokal.

In 2011, Neuer joined Bayern Munich and since the 2012-13 season, he won every single Bundesliga title until 2021-22. He also won two Champions League crowns among other trophies in his 300+ appearances for the club.

A skilled defender with lightning speed and a strong shot, Rafinha impressed Schalke with his performances at Brazilian club Coirtiba.

They brought him to Germany in 2005 and over the course of the next five years, Rafinha made 153 appearances for Schalke.

The tricky right-back went on to make over 150 appearances for Bayern Munich later in his career, winning a host of trophies.

Matip began his career at Schalke 04 in 2009 and formed an important part of their team that won the DFB Pokal and DFL Supercup in 2011.

His debut in Bundesliga is one that Matip will remember forever as he scored in a draw against Bayern Munich and was named Man of the Match.

It is worth knowing that Matip spent his initial years at Schalke playing as a defensive midfielder before changing to centre-back.

He made 258 appearances and scored 23 goals for Schalke before moving to Liverpool on a free transfer in 2016.

Schalke legend Benedikt Howedes graduated from the club's academy and made his first team debut in 2007.

He played there for 11 years, making 240 appearances, winning the DFB Pokal in 2010-11 and the DFB Supercup in 2011.

The centre-back joined Lokomotiv Moscow in 2018 before retiring from club football. He is currently the assistant manager of Germany's national team.

After starting his career at Swiss club Basel, Schalke signed Ivan Rakitic in 2007, a relatively unknown Croatian youngster at that time.

However, Rakitic was a revelation in Germany, scoring 12 goals in 97 appearances for Schalke until 2011 before moving to Spain with Sevilla and later featuring for Barcelona.

The most disappointing part of Rakitic's Schalke stint was that he didn't win a single trophy at the club, but his performances mesmerised fans in Germany.

Arguably, Schalke still haven't been able to replace a class act like Rakitic!

Goretzka arrived at Schalke from Bochum in 2013.

The talented central midfielder immediately adjusted to the club culture and established himself as first-choice at the club.

Between 2013 to 2018, Goretzka made 116 appearances for Schalke, scoring 14 goals before leaving for Bayern Munich and winning the Champions League, among other major trophies.

This Dream Team would be incomplete with Leroy Sane.

Sane was part of Schalke's youth academy before making his senior debut for them in 2014.

He made just senior 47 appearances for them, but in those games, he turned himself into one of the best young wingers in world football. Sane scored on his Champions League debut against Real Madrid in a game Schalke won 4-3 in 2015.

His performances at Schalke saw him sign for Manchester City in 2016 before Bayern Munich brought him back to Germany in 2020.

It would be unfair to leave Marc Wilmots out of this team and he deserves an honourable mention here. The Belgian star could play anywhere in an attacking position and made 138 appearances for Schalke between 1996 and 2003, winning the Uefa Cup in his first season and the DFB Pokal in 2001-02.

While he might not have made many appearances for Schalke in his two senior seasons at the club, Mesut Ozil surely used the opportunities he received in order to establish himself as "the next big thing" in world football.

In his 30 appearances for Schalke, Ozil impressed enough for Werder Bremen to sign him in 2008.

After impressing at the World Cup in 2010 with Germany, Real Madrid beat competition from other top clubs to sign him. Ozil went on to feature for Arsenal and Fenerbahce later in his career.

Considering what he achieved in the game, including winning the World Cup in 2014, Ozil deserves a spot here.

German winger Julian Draxler started as a youngster at Schalke in their academy before moving up the ranks to make his debut for the senior team in 2011.

What followed was an impressive four-year spell in which Draxler made 119 appearances and regularly mesmerised as he helped Schalke win the DFB Pokal in 2010-11 and the DFL Supercup in 2011.

His performances saw him garner interest from some top clubs around Europe before PSG signed him in 2017.

After an amazing start to his career with Heerenveen and Ajax, Klaas Jan Huntelaar became Real Madrid's statement signing in 2009, but he couldn't even survive one season there, joining Milan in 2009 for a season before arriving at Schalke in 2010.

At Schalke, Huntelaar formed a striking partnership with the legendary Raul as they became the greatest striking duo in the club's history.

Huntelaar scored 84 goals in 184 games for Schalke, winning the DFB Pokal in 2010-11 and the DFL Super Cup in 2011.

Another Schalke striker who deserves a mention here is Raul. The Spanish legend arrived in Germany after a legendary spell with Real Madrid in 2010. Raul made over 500 appearances and scored over 200 goals for Los Blancos. He went on to play 66 games for Schalke, scoring 28 goals as he helped them win the 2010-11 DFB Pokal and the 2011 DFL Supercup.

The greatest striker in Schalke's history, without a doubt, is Klaus Fischer.

The German forward arrived in Gelsenkirchen in 1970 and went on to play for 11 years at the club, scoring 182 goals in 295 appearances.

Fischer is to date the greatest goalscorer in Schalke's history.

Despite all of his individual achievements at the club, Fischer could help Schalke win just one trophy, the DFB Pokal in the 1971-72 season.

A unique fact about Fischer is that he was known as "Mr. Bicycle Kick" thanks to his incredible technique in scoring overhead goals.