Schalke's new coach Roberto Di Matteo said Wednesday his priority is to improve the Royal Blues' defence as he sets his sights on a Champions League showdown with his ex-club Chelsea.

The 44-year-old was officially unveiled in Gelsenkirchen as Schalke's coach with his new team 11th in the Bundesliga and low on confidence after just two wins in 10 games this season.

The Swiss-born Italian will take charge of his first training session on Thursday and his first match as coach is at home to Hertha Berlin on October 18.

Di Matteo says his goals are to qualify for the Champions League knock-out phase and to secure their place in next season's competition by finishing in the top three in the Bundesliga.

"It's a good team, which has a lot of potential going forward, but it has some problems in defence," said Di Matteo, who has replaced fired predecessor Jens Keller.

"We have to work on our defensive organisation and I have a lot of work ahead of me."

Di Matteo is Schalke's eighth coach in six years and he knows the importance of stamping his authority on the team.

"There is only one boss in the dressing room," he told reporters.

"We have to work on getting more organised and work on the players' confidence. There is no miracle cure, we need patience and time."

There will be plenty of attention for his showdown at home against his former club on November 25 in the Champions League, although Di Matteo, who steered Chelsea to European Cup glory in 2012, did not want to be drawn on it.

"I have only been here 24 hours and there are a lot of games to come before that one," said the ex-Lazio star.

Schalke sit second to Chelsea in Group G after drawing their first two Champions League games, including a 1-1 stalemate at Stamford Bridge.

Di Matteo even took some tips from Germany coach Joachim Loew before taking the Schalke job, his first coaching appointment since being sacked by Chelsea in November 2012.

"I have been friends with Jogi for years," he revealed. "I managed to get a lot of information from him, so that I was well prepared."

Whether Di Matteo, whose assistant will be Attilio Lombardo, will sign any new players in January remains to be seen.

"We have enough time until the next transfer window to be able to get a good picture of what we have," said Schalke's director of sport Horst Heldt.