Former Germany goalkeeper Jens Lehmann may put his retirement from football on hold again in favour of joining Schalke next season.
Horst Heldt, the general manager of the Bundesliga side, has confirmed in the German media that Lehmann is an option that Schalke are considering following the departure of Manuel Neuer to Bayern Munich last week.
The 41-year-old veteran would be held in reserve of new goalkeeper, Ralf Faehrmann.
While no decision has been made yet, Heldt remains adamant that Lehmann is a part of Schalke’s plans for next season.
“We always said that we want to hire a second goalkeeper if Manuel Neuer leaves. There are various scenarios and Jens Lehmann is a part of it,” said Heldt.
“Everyone who knows Jens knows that he is 100 per cent fit," he added.
While Schalke remain optimistic about the proposed move, the idea has received mixed reactions elsewhere.
Former Schalke goalkeeper Neuer said “I don’t believe that it will work,” and Germany manager Joachim Loew is unsure “whether it makes sense for the team”.
Former Germany manager, Juergen Klinsmann, who promoted Lehmann to the German number one ahead of Oliver Kahn during the 2006 World Cup, agreed that Lehmann was quite fit, but that he might be overly ambitious to return to Schalke.