Mateu Morey, Jude Bellingham, Gio Reyna, Youssoufa Moukoko and Immanuel Pherai (l-r.) are all looking to impress in pre-season for Borussia Dortmund. - © DFL
Mateu Morey, Jude Bellingham, Gio Reyna, Youssoufa Moukoko and Immanuel Pherai (l-r.) are all looking to impress in pre-season for Borussia Dortmund. - © DFL
bundesliga

Five Borussia Dortmund youngsters to watch in pre-season and into 2020/21

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With every new season comes a fresh opportunity for young players to impress coaches and earn more game time with the first team. At Borussia Dortmund, with their wide array of talented youngsters even beyond Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho, that's no different.

bundesliga.com looks at five young Dortmund talents who will be looking to impress ahead of the new campaign, which starts on 18 September…

Jude Bellingham

Age: 17
Position:
Central midfield

Despite only turning 17 at the end of June, Bellingham has gone straight into first-team training under Lucien Favre since arriving from Birmingham City this summer. The second English teenage star to join Dortmund in the last three years, he's looking to follow in the footsteps of Sancho by making an outstanding start to life in the Bundesliga.

Bellingham played the first 45 minutes of BVB's opening pre-season fixture of the summer, partnering Thomas Delaney in central midfield during a 6-0 win over SC Rheindorf Altach on 12 August. The England U17 international boasts the kind of versatility Favre loves to work with. He can provide defensive security in a deeper role, play as an attacking threat if others are injured or - as he did in Dortmund's friendly win - be the creative lynchpin between midfield and attack as a No.8.

Bellingham made an interception and found Haaland to help set up BVB's opening goal against Austrian side Altach before earning a backheeled assist for the third. If he continues to impress like that, the talented teen will quickly become a consistent first-team fixture throughout his debut campaign in the Bundesliga.

Gio Reyna

Age: 17
Position:
Attacking midfield

With club captain Marco Reus out injured for the foreseeable future, a slot has opened up in the Dortmund attack that Reyna will be out to make his own. The USA U17 international has already made two Bundesliga starts and 15 league appearances overall since his debut against Augsburg in January, providing one assist. He also notched his maiden goal at senior level with a long-range stunner in the DFB Cup against Werder Bremen.

Gio Reyna (c.) has already impressed in the Borussia Dortmund first-team alongside the likes of Jadon Sancho (l.) and Erling Haaland (r.). - imago

The attacking midfielder - who can play anywhere across a potential three-man support of striker Haaland – started and scored in Dortmund's opening pre-season game in Austria.

It's likely that the Sunderland-born playmaker will have to battle with Julian Brandt for a starting role in Reus' place, but Favre sounds like a real fan already. "Gio played well today," the Swiss coach said after the Altach game. "He is very, very clever. He runs a lot and he defends the right way. That's very important for an attacking midfielder. He's doing both things very, very well."

Youssoufa Moukoko

Age: 15
Position:
Striker

It's impossible not to be excited about a player who has totalled 127 goals and 26 assists in just 84 appearances for BVB's youth teams in the space of four years. All the more so considering Moukoko was often battling against players four years older than himself during that time.

Despite not turning 16 until November – and not being able to make his debut in the Bundesliga until then – Moukoko has taken those impressive numbers and turned them into impressive performances in training with the Dortmund first team in the last month.

15-year-old Youssoufa Moukoko has been training with the Borussia Dortmund first-team for the first time this summer. - imago images

"Moukoko is much better than I was at his age," said Haaland at Dortmund's Bad Ragaz training camp in Switzerland. "I have never seen such a good 15-year-old in my life. The advantage for him is that he's already playing for Dortmund at the age of 15. At his age, I was still playing for my home town of Bryne."

It is indeed an advantage, and with Haaland offering an arm around his young shoulders along the way, this could well be the beginning of a very bright future for Moukoko at the Signal Iduna Park.

Mateu Morey

Age: 20
Position:
Right-back

Achraf Hakimi's right wing-back position at Dortmund is available for the first time in two years after the Moroccan's loan from Real Madrid ended after 2019/20. Fellow Spanish-speaking defender Morey will be out to earn his shot at the slot in the first-team squad.

Mateu Morey (r.) is looking to take the place of Achraf Hakmi in the Borussia Dortmund first-team in 2020/21. - imago images

Despite Dortmund signing Belgium international Thomas Meunier from Paris Saint-Germain this summer, Morey has already shown his capabilities as potentially the first-choice Hakimi replacement.

A product of Barcelona's famed La Masia youth academy, he played in five of the last six Bundesliga games of 2019/20, even starting away at RB Leipzig in Dortmund's impressive 2-0 win. With that performance, the Spaniard put his name in Favre's mind for the upcoming season, and he played a solid opening 45 minutes in BVB's win over Altach. Now it's about continuing to impress the Swiss coach ahead of Dortmund's opening Bundesliga game of the season against Borussia Mönchengladbach.

Immanuel Pherai

Age: 19
Position:
Attacking midfield

Born in Amsterdam to a mother from Brazil and father from Suriname, Pherai has flair and international influence flowing through his veins and in his style of play. The Dutch youth international joined Dortmund from AZ Alkmaar in 2017, playing a vital role in his first two seasons as he helped the U17s and U19s to German titles in consecutive years.

Capable of playing in central midfield or further up the pitch in the No.10 position, he has since been training with the first-team this summer. Priding himself on his ability on the ball and the array of skills he’s capable of - like his idol Ronaldinho - Pherai looked eager to impress against Altach as he started alongside Haaland, Reyna and Sancho in attack.

The 19-year-old produced a highly-impressive display in linking up with his fellow youngsters – despite missing an open goal along the way – and looked settled alongside Haaland and Co. Another potential option to replace Reus, Pherai provides yet more youthful depth to Dortmund’s squad - and will be keen to become more than just a back-up during the coming season.