Schalke's Huntelaar doubtful for Champions League playoff

BERLIN (Reuters) - Schalke 04 striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar is doubtful for next week's Champions League playoff round first leg against PAOK after suffering up a knee injury in a 4-0 loss at VfL Wolfsburg on Saturday, coach Jens Keller said.

Portugal's goalkeeper Beto fights for the ball with Netherlands' Jan Huntelaar during their international friendly soccer match near Faro

"Whether Klaas-Jan Huntelaar can play against PAOK is something I do not know yet," Keller told reporters.

"He is feeling a sting in the knee and I took him off at halftime but we will have to wait and see how the injury develops until Wednesday," he said of the Dutchman, who will undergo further checks on Saturday.

Schalke, fourth in the Bundesliga last season, take on PAOK after Ukraine's Metalist Kharkiv, who beat the Greeks in the previous round, were disqualified earlier this week over their 2008 involvement in a domestic match-fixing case.

The winner of the playoff earns a spot in the lucrative Champions League group stage.

(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by Ken Ferris)