Borussia Dortmund have departed their base in Shanghai and arrived in Shenzhen, where their second match in this summer's International Champions Cup (ICC) will take place tomorrow lunchtime (German time). At 13:35 CET, BVB will face Manchester City.

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With one day of the China Tour left, the head coach drew a very positive conclusion: "At a major international club, you have to banish the notion that you can spend six weeks at home and train behind closed doors." Instead, the boss waxed lyrical about the "experiences that we in the coaching staff, as a team, as a club, have enjoyed. They make us more mature, open and broaden our horizons. We wanted to make the most of the circumstances. We have had the level of exertion we wanted for our pre-season preparations. Anyone who has seen us train in the last few days and who saw us take on Manchester United knows that we have dedicated ourselves to this. The team has really earned a big compliment." 

Four intensive sessions on Monday and Tuesday were followed by a lighter session on Wednesday, one day before the clash with Manchester City. Sokratis, Marcel Schmelzer and Dzenis Burnis were absent due to "minor injuries", said Tuchel, who was also without Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, though this time for entirely positive reasons. The striker has headed home prematurely, where his partner is soon expecting the couple's second child.

"These experiences make us more open"

At the pre-match press conference, Thomas Tuchel was also asked about the fluctuation in the squad. The BVB coach praised the architecture of the stadium and spoke glowingly of the fans who had travelled 26 hours to wait in front of the team hotel in the hope of getting an autograph or a selfie. "That," remarked Tuchel, "is impressive".

Boris Rupert