Fährmann: 'I wish to end my career at Schalke'
Schalke 04 captain Ralf Fährmann says he plans to spend the rest of his career at the club.
Since making his professional debut for Schalke 04 back in 2008, Ralf Fährmann has gone on to make 209 appearances for the Royal Blues.
Actually, the 29-year-old goalkeeper has played every Bundesliga match for Schalke in the last three seasons - and he intends to continue playing for Schalke until the end of his career.
"I wish to end my career at Schalke," Fährmann told Kicker and added:
"It's nice to imagine that I'll maybe end up among some of the greatest Schalke players who have made the most league appearances in a row."
Fährmann has appeared in Schalke's last 110 Bundesliga games and is nearing the club record for most games played in a row that Rolf Rüssmann (134 Bundesliga games in a row) set back in 1980.
It's no coincidence that it's exactly that record that Fährmann could potentially break. Because, as he explains, he simply always wants to be on the pitch.
"I always want to play," Fährmann told Kicker and continued:
"I will certainly not give up my place without a fight. It doesn't matter if it's a Bundesliga or Champions League match, if we're playing Schweinfurt in the cup or it's a test match against a team from the seventh division. Even in training, it's hard for me to just watch an exercise."
After coming through Schalke's youth system, Fährmann made three appearances for the senior side before moving on to Eintracht Frankfurt in 2009 as he searched for more playing time.
In 2011 - shortly after Schalke sold Manuel Neuer to Bayern München - Fährmann returned to the club and has eventually managed to claim the role as first-choice keeper.