Borussia Dortmund begin the 2025-26 Champions League campaign away to Juventus at the Allianz Arena on Tuesday as Niko Kovac's side have been handed a baptism of fire on the opening day.
It marks their first competitive meeting in over a decade, with Dortmund last facing Juventus in March 2015 when the sides clashed in the round of 16 of the competition.
The Bianconeri came out 5-1 winners on aggregate, including a 2-1 victory in the first leg in Turin. Dortmund will be hoping for better fortunes, 10 years later as they also prepared for the clash with a 2-0 away win to Heidenheim at the weekend.
Serhou Guirassy and Maxmilian Beier were the scorers on the night as Die Borussen were handed their second league win in a row and remained unbeaten in all competitions so far in their campaign.
Juventus, though, overcame Inter Milan 4-3 in a seven-goal thriller to keep their winning start to the season in Serie A intact, while also signaling their attacking prowess on home turf. Dortmund have been warned.
Here's how the Bundesliga giants could line-up against Juventus:
After conceding thrice in their opening game to St. Pauli, Gregor Kobel has managed to keep clean sheets in his next two appearances, which should give him the confidence to face Juve's menacing forwards on Tuesday.
In defense, Der BVB have struggled with a couple of injuries as Niklas Sule, Emre Can, and Nico Schlotterbeck are still on the casualty list. So head coach Kovac will be forced to stick with the back-three of Aaron Anselmino, Waldemar Anton, and Ramy Bensebaini - a trio that has looked solid together lately.
Not many changes are expected in the midfield, besides Jobe Bellingham, who is likely to return to the XI after coming off the bench on Saturday. The Champions League is a different kettle of fish, though, and the youngster will have a chance to impress there too.
In-form forward Serhou Guirassy should lead the line once more as the Guinea international has scored in every game for Dortmund in the 2025-26 campaign. Overall, his record currently stands at five goals from four games, including one in the DFB Cup last month, as Guirassy is sure to ruffle a few Bianconeri feathers too.
Julian Brandt returns from an injury and should slot right back into the XI along with Maximilian Beier, with the duo operating on either side of their prolific marksman. Karim Adeyemi, who bagged an assist at the weekend, might be used as an impact substitute here.
Borussia Dortmund's predicted XI (3-4-3): Gregor Kobel; Julian Ryerson, Waldemar Anton and Ramy Bensebaini; Yan Couto, Marcel Sabitzer, Jobe Bellingham, Daniel Svensson; Julian Brandt, Maxmilian Beier; Serhou Guirassy.