Borussia Dortmund's team have been back in training for 12 days and are preparing for their first friendly tonight (local time), when they face English champions Manchester City in the ICC. Lucien Favre will make changes during the 90 minutes to manage the load.

...on the strong pre-season opponents:
We planned it that way – it's very good for us! We only recommenced training a week ago. So we're not yet completely ready. That's logical. Nonetheless, it's very good to play against such teams.

...on the quick succession of the friendlies against Manchester City and Liverpool:
Logically, the players are not yet ready to play 90 minutes. We'll make a lot of substitutions.

...on the possible position of Mario Götze:
We have several options. He can play in several positions. It'll depend on the system we play.

...on Christian Pulisic:
I think it's good for young players to be able to play in several positions. That's good for their development. I mostly see him playing on the right side. He's still young and can learn a lot.

...on Marco Reus:
I knew him very well, but that was a long time ago. Six years. He's a very good player.

Mario Götze on the summer break and the pre-season preparations:
I feel very good. It was a longer break that I really took advantage of to switch off and prepare myself for the season. I'm looking forward to what lies ahead and I'm feeling very optimistic.

...on the first few days with Lucien Favre:
I've been surprised by the training, in a positive way. If we put into practice what the coach expects of us, then I'm very positive that some very good things can happen. I'm personally really excited to take the next step.

...on his first full pre-season with BVB:
For a player, it's always important to be part of the pre-season preparations to acquire the necessary fitness. As a team, we want to make the best-possible start to the season and do as well as we possibly can.
Recorded by Boris Rupert