Borussia Dortmund and AS Roma meet in a preseason friendly for the first time since 2007 as both clubs wrap-up their preparations for the new season.
The BVB face Bayern Munich a week later in the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup while Roma open their Serie A campaign at home to Fiorentina on 24 August.
Although it's still only a friendly, expect both sides to feature their best players as they aim to assess and improve their forms one last time before heading into the 2026-27 campaign.
Here are three things to watch in the match:
3) Battle of fragile defenses
Both teams boast a handful of marquee attackers but their defense has left a lot to be desired during the preseason campaign. For one, Dortmund have conceded in every game except one, the 1-0 win over FC Tokyo a few weeks ago while Roma have lost 3-0 to Brighton and 4-1 to Cardiff City this summer, while also drawing 3-3 with Cannes. Clearly, the sides have endured a precipitous fall from the defensive standards they set last season, with the BVB boasting the meanest Bundesliga defense and the Giallorossi conceding the fewest after only Como.
2) The return of Donyell Malen
The match promises an exciting reunion between Borussia Dortmund and their former marksman Donyell Malen, who completed a permanent transfer to AS Roma this summer following a spectacular loan spell last term that yielded 14 league from 18 games. He is expected to start upfront for the Giallorossi on Saturday as Malen aims to make a mark on his Westflonstadion return. During his BVB days, the Dutchman played 132 times for the club and contributed 59 goals (39 strikes and 20 assists) while also reaching the 2024 UEFA Champions League final. Malen is only the fifth player in history to play for both these clubs, after Jurgen Schutz, Thomas Habler, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Mats Hummels.
1) Home debut for Konstantinos Karetsas
Well, what else were you expecting here? Dortmund fans haven't stopped raving about Karetsas since his explosive debut against Arsenal last weekend that saw him net a fabulous goal against the Premier League champions too. On Saturday, the Greek international will play at the Signal Iduna Park for the first time since his mega transfer from KRC Genk and head coach Niko Kovac will be demanding more of the same heroics that we saw from him at the Emirates.
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