Schalke and Borussia Dortmund are hoping for a peaceful Revierderby when they meet at the Veltins Arena on Saturday following the trouble that took place surrounding the match last season.
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The clash between the two rivals is seen as the biggest and most prestigious derby in Germany, which has often led to violence from both clubs' sets of supporters.
Last term, a group of Dortmund fans started rioting at the Veltins Arena, throwing flares and bangers onto the pitch and into the stands, resulting in a delayed kick-off.
Dortmund were then fined 30,000 euros and hit with a suspended shutdown of their famous "Yellow Wall" stand, which has a 24,454 capacity for domestic games.
"The enforcement of this measure is suspended for seven months. That means that the partial exclusion will only take place if it comes to severe misconduct during the period of probation," the German Football Association announced in March.
The return Revierderby at the Westfalenstadion in March was played with 3,045 seats remaining empty for security reasons and proved to be a peaceful affair.
"We'd like to think that it will be a peaceful derby [again on Saturday], and that emotions will only be battled out on the pitch" Schalke sporting director Horst Heldt told reporters on Thursday.
"Of course, we had those nasty scenes in our last home game against Dortmund. But we acted and both sets of fans have shown in the last derby at Dortmund that they are solely focused on the support of their team."
Heldt, however, added that there will be consequences in the event of further rioting from supporters this weekend.
"Should something happen on Saturday, we leave the option of playing a derby without away fans open," he said.
Dortmund midfielder Shinji Kagawa, who scored a brace in his first derby at the Veltins Arena, is aware that a victory on Saturday can set the tone for the club's next few matches.
"We are on a two-game winless run in the Bundesliga," Kagawa told Dortmund's official website. "That's why a win at Schalke would be massive for us. A derby victory would give us a lift for the next match at Anderlecht [in the Champions League] and the upcoming games in the Bundesliga."
Both teams have been suffering from injuries of late, with Schalke currently without the likes of Benedikt Howedes, Sead Kolasinac and Jefferson Farfan, while Dortmund are missing Ilkay Gundogan, Marco Reus, and Nuri Sahin to name a few.
Schalke also hope that youngster Kaan Ayhan and winger Sidney Sam are available for selection.
Whoever starts, Schalke coach Jens Keller knows that the derby will be decided by attitude on the pitch, not by injuries.
"The strain on both clubs during the season is also very high and that's why both teams have stuttered a little," Keller told Schalke's official website. "It's a derby. All the players will give their all and forget their problems."