Schalke boss Felix Magath has already started the mind games with four matches to go before the midway stage of the season.

Magath persistently ruled his former club Wolfsburg out of the running for the title last season, insisting they were not experienced enough to succeed, but they still lifted the silverware at the end of the year.

And the Royal Blues, who are currently third in the table, two points behind leaders Bayer Leverkusen, are equally unprepared for glory, according to Magath.

"I really don't want to win the league - the team cannot manage that," he said.

"We are not aiming for the title, we are only aiming for fifth place."

Schalke head for struggling Borussia Monchengladbach tomorrow and Magath's modesty even has him suggesting his side will be underdogs tomorrow against a side who have 10 fewer points than his own.

"Of course we are not the clear favourites," he told the Bild newspaper. "Borussia have become more stable recently and have picked up some very good results of late, sometimes even better than ours.

"It is going to be hard to get one or three points."

Borussia have put a sequence of five straight defeats behind them with two wins and two draws from their last four games.

This has lifted the pressure from coach Michael Frontzeck, who insists he has felt the constant backing of his club's fans anyway.

"That's because they could see that the team was trying, "he said. "The fans' support is fantastic and, together with them, we can really build something again here."

Frontzeck will try to keep the changes to a minimum, given his side's excellent recent form.