Borussia Monchengladbach have extended the contract of their midfielder and captain Juan Arango on the eve of their top-of-the-table clash with Schalke.

The 31-year-old has signed a new deal which ties him to the club until June 2014.

"Juan Arango is one of the best midfielders in the league and he is a very important player for us," said Gladbach's director of sport Max Eberl.

"Therefore, we are delighted to have been able to tie him to us for a further two years."

Arango should make his 80th appearance for the Foals on Saturday and coach Lucien Favre is delighted he can plan with him for the future.

"Juan has a very precise left foot both with short passes and long balls," he said.

"In addition, he can read the game very well."

The Venezuelan is the only player to have appeared in every single match for Gladbach this season, going the full distance in every game.

He has been one of the keys to Gladbach's excellent form which has taken them to within three points of league leaders Borussia Dortmund and just one point adrift of Saturday's opponents, who have been warned about their potential.

"Monchengladbach defend very well and are quick to break and get the ball into the attack," said Schalke coach Huub Stevens at the pre-match press conference.

"They are very clever. We have got to keep our patience and ensure that we create chances and that we take them."

They discovered this to their cost just before Christmas when a 3-1 defeat at the Borussia Park stadium saw them crash out of the DFB-Pokal.

"We have got to draw the right conclusions from that game," added Stevens. "We need to end the game with 11 men."

Klaas Jan Huntelaar and Jermaine Jones both saw red in that heated clash with the latter suspended also in the Bundesliga for a crude foul on Gladbach's Marco Reus.

Huntelaar is available to gain his revenge, on the other hand while Favre has a fully-fit squad to choose from, and that is bound to include Reus.