Although they easily dispatched them in the Champions League, Borussia Dortmund gave their fans something to smile about this past weekend as they got revenge on Juventus by beating them 2-0. For anyone who viewed the match, it was clear from the outset that die Schwarzgelben were on an entirely different level compared to the Bianconeri, who struggled to impose themselves on the match. However, whilst Thomas Tuchel's men are well into their pre-season, having played six games prior to taking on the Serie A champions, Massimiliano Allegri's side are just coming together and were featuring in their first ever match since the season ended with a 3-1 loss to Barcelona in the Champions League final.
This summer has seen quite a bit of change for la Vecchia Signora. Key players like Andrea Pirlo and Carlos Tevez, both mainstays of their successful campaigns over the past few years have now departed for NYC FC and Boca Juniors respectively. Juventus were quick to bring in some new faces, including experienced Champions League winners Mario Mandzukic and Sami Khedira as well as exciting young prospects such as Paulo Dybala.
Both Mandzukic and Dybala made their debut against Dortmund and were fielded as part of a three-man attack alongside Alvaro Morata, but naturally, the trio have yet to gel and fans will hope that they will be able to get in sync as Juventus seek to enjoy yet another fruitful season with more trophies. Despite their inability to combine effectively, expect Allegri to nonetheless have his two new attackers again being deployed with Morata in their upcoming friendly.
Juve's next opponents, Lechia Gdansk, may not be well known to people outside Poland. However, the Ekstraklasa side will be keen on taking on a familiar foe as they prepare to celebrate their 70th anniversary. The year 1983 was arguably their best season in history, which saw them win the Polish Cup as well as the Super Cup - the only two titles to their name thus far. As a result of their success, they were given the chance to take on the Bianconeri in what was known as the European Cup Winners Cup. Not surprisingly, Gdansk, who were in the country's second division, were humiliated 7-0 in the first leg. However, in the second leg, they put up an impressive fight, scoring twice and making Juventus really work to grind out a 3-2 win.
The hosts are well into their season, having featured in three friendlies and two regular matches, in which they have experienced mixed results. In their friendlies, all played against Bundesliga sides, they drew Hannover and Wolfsburg, but lost to Schalke. Meanwhile, in their domestic games against Cracovia Krakow and Lech Poznan, Jerzy Brzeczek's side were defeated 1-0 and 2-1 respectively. As such, they will be looking for their first win as they prepare to welcome Italy's strongest side tomorrow.
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