Hildebrand: Keeper criticism too much

Schalke 04 goalkeeper Timo Hildebrand has spoken out about the wave of criticism he faced in the wake of his Champions League blunder against Chelsea. Hildebrand was left red-faced after his goal-kick was charged down by Chelsea's Samuel Eto'o and flew into the empty net for the first of two goals for the Cameroonian in the Blues' 3-0 win over Schalke at Stamford Bridge at the start of this month. Hildebrand, 34, said the barrage of criticism that followed showed that little has changed in the public's reaction to on-pitch errors since the suicide of Germany goalkeeper Robert Enke in 2009 after a long battle with depression. "The issue has already been discussed after the death of Robert Enke," Hildebrand, whose Schalke contract expires at the end of the season, told magazine 11Freunde. "At that time, everyone pledged to be more considerate in their dealings with each other, but basically, the situation has only gotten worse. "We're just trying to do the best possible job and sometimes mistakes happen. "Certainly, the last two weeks weren't easy for me, but I have definitely experienced worse situations in my career." Schalke, who are second in Champions League Group E behind Chelsea, can still qualify for the knock-out stages and are away to Steaua Bucharest next week before hosting Swiss champions FC Basel in December. Source: AFP