Dortmund will have a notable friendly match with Cerezo Osaka at Yodoko Sakura stadium, within the framework of the Asian pre-season tour. This is considered a much higher quality test for coach Niko Kovac's team after 2 matches against lower-ranked opponents of Germany.
In the early stages of the preparation process, Kovac gave the opportunity to play to most players to assess the force. However, when many key players just returned after the 2026 World Cup, Dortmund will enter an acceleration phase to complete the squad towards the new season.
On the other side, Cerezo Osaka will have their first match since the end of the season on June 6. This is also the only training session of the Japanese representative before the new season kicks off on August 8.
The biggest highlight of the match was the reunion between Dortmund and Shinji Kagawa. The former Japanese international, currently 37 years old, had two periods playing for the Ruhr team and contributed to helping the club win many titles before moving to Manchester United.
In their most recent meeting in 2024, Dortmund defeated Cerezo Osaka 3-2. Karim Adeyemi scored a double, while Jamie Gittens also put his name on the scoreboard to help the Bundesliga representative take a 3-0 lead in the first half. Although Masaya Shibayama and Reiya Sakata scored 2 goals to narrow the gap after halftime, Cerezo Osaka still could not avoid defeat.
Although Dortmund is rated higher in terms of squad quality, Niko Kovac is likely to continue rotating forces to assess personnel options. Meanwhile, Cerezo Osaka will be determined to avenge the debt from the defeat 2 years ago and take advantage of the home field to create a surprise.
Link to watch live Cerezo Osaka - Dortmund match:
https://tv360.vn/tv/tv360-4?ch=2458&ev=96256&es=1&col=banner§=BANNER&page=home
