With a mere 43-days standing between Kopite’s everywhere and Liverpool’s first pre-season friendly against Preston North End on July 19th, today the club have announced that the Reds will take on Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund at Anfield on August 10th; one-week before the Premier League kicks-off in earnest.
The visit to Deepdale, where Brendan Rodgers side ran out 4-0 winners in last season’s “Shankly Shield” match, will be followed up by a whirl-wind trip of the United States for the Guinness International Champions Cup where they’re guaranteed to meet Greek side Olympiakos, domestic rivals Manchester City and famous Champions League rivals AC Milan, as well as playing a one-off match repeat of last season’s match against Italian side AS Roma in Boston ahead of the finals on August 4th.
“It has been over a decade since Borussia Dortmund played at Anfield so we are looking forward to welcoming them back,” said Liverpool’s chief commercial officer Billy Hogan on the official website. “This fixture promises an electric atmosphere as both teams get ready for the upcoming season and the possibility of meeting again in the Champions League.”
This season Jurgen Klopp’s side will be looking to make up ground on German juggernauts, and fierce rivals, Bayern Munich after they finished 19-points ahead of second placed Dortmund in the Bundesliga. With the clash coming a mere week before the Premier League kicks-off in earnest, Die Schwarzgelben is exactly the kind of team that will get Rodgers men fired up and in the right frame of mind for what lies ahead.
