2015/16: day 31 of pre-season - live updates
Cologne - Almost there now! The curtain-raiser to the 2015/16 Bundesliga season is looming even larger with VfL Wolfsburg facing FC Bayern München in the Supercup...tomorrow!
You can keep up to date with what they are both up to, and how their 16 Bundesliga rivals are also preparing for the new campaign with our usual, daily bulletins from the Bundesliga right here.
Köln look ahead to Colonia Cup
Köln fans have much to look forward to this weekend. Iker Casillas and his Porto side are in town, along with Valencia and Stoke City, to contest the Colonia Cup at the RheinEnergieStadion.
Bundesliga 2 countdown
Meanwhile, in Bundesliga 2 there are three games this evening, two of them starting at 18:30 CEST, including 1. FC Nürnberg's first home game of the season against 1. FC Heidenheim.
Translation: 'Nice to be back, 70 minutes until kick-off'
Relief for Wolfsburg fans
It looks like one of your key players could well be involved in the Supercup tomorrow..
Getting closer
Oooh, you can almost smell it. The Supercup, that is. Bayern are on their way to Wolfsburg for tomorrow's curtain-raiser.
New barnet
New season, new cut of hair - so why are you covering it up with a hat, Hakan?!
Colonia Cup here we come
The hosts are raring to go with Stoke City their first guests this weekend...
Aubameyang extends
Some of the biggest news in the Bundesliga today was the contract extension Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang signed, keeping him at Borussia Dortmund until 2020. Here's the Gabonese star himself expressing his delight at committing to BVB, via social media...
Magic-taryan is back?
2014/15 wasn't his season, but after providing the assist for Borussia Dortmund's only goal in their 1-0 win over Wolfsberger AC last night, maybe the coming campaign will be kinder to Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
Hammerblow for Gladbach
It looks like Borussia Mönchengladbach will be without captain Martin Stranzl come the start of the season.
Sam gets the shivers
I said brr it's cold in here...there must be a Sidney Sam in an ice bath!
Warming up the vocal chords
What better way to get yourself in the mood for a training session that with a high paced Samba session!
Dynamic duo!
Rafinha has high hopes for the 2015/16 campaign. After all he will be one of the players tasked with providing Robert Lewandowski with service off the right wing.
Fun times!
It's seem training is just as much fun as floating down some wild rapids on a raft for the Hannover 96 lads.
Blockbuster move!?
We'd certainly prefer Anthony Ujah over Ben Affleck, but that may be wishful thinking on our part!
Motivational defenders
Yesterday it was Holger Badstuber, today it's FC Bayern München team-mate Dante who has been spreading motivational words of wisdom to his followers on Twitter.
Brazilian overhours
The man described by Schalke head coach Andre Breitenreiter as a "machine", is definitely living up to that title as he continues to work relentlessly towards being 100% ready for the upcoming campaign.
Bayern press conference
Prior to departure for Wolfsburg, Bayern coach Pep Guardiola has met with the media in Munich. Here are just a few things the Catalan had to say:
"I think FC Bayern have a lot of rivals, not just Wolfsburg. Dortmund I think will come back and have a better season. Leverksuen, Gladbach and Schalke can all pose a threat. But Wolfsburg were the runners-up [last season] and have a great team with a lot of good German players. I hope Kevin De Bruyne can play. I hope he can play so they can have their best team out.
"I’m delighted about the players we’ve brought in. When they asked me about [Arturo] Vidal I said I have no doubts. With his character and the way he plays, Vidal will help us as a team.
"Philipp [Lahm] is one of our most important players. Last year he played in two or three different positions. I love seeing him in the centre because I think he has exceptional qualities that suit that position. Philipp is a great player but he has a lot of competition in the centre whereas I only have one right back in Rafinha. So yes [he will play at right back].
"Tomorrow I want to win this title. I want to guide this club to becoming the first to win four consecutive league titles. If we win then it’s a big title, but if we lose then it’s a small title."
Colonia Cup preparations
Saturday sees the Colonia cup, and the hosts are just about ready:
Gelsenkirchen getting ready
Schalke 04 host FC Twente on Sunday, and the city is already getting excited
That's a wrap
At least it is for Bremen, who have concluded their training session this morning:
Envy, anybody?
It certainly will have been hard work, but few would not have wished to trade places with the Frankfurt players in excellent conditions on Friday
As promised...
Here's some of those Werder Bremen training updates we promised earlier
Super plans for the Supercup
One early training session, a press conference, and then off to Wolfsburg.
There to meet with...
Bayern's hosts Wolfsburg are also getting ready...
Morning shopping?
Wolfsburg's summer recruit Carlos Ascues is promoting the sale of his new number six shirt. Wonder how many he has already bought?
Plans for this morning?
Werder Bremen have a training session scheduled for 10:00 CEST, so if you don't have anything else planned, you can stay tuned here for regular updates from SVW.
Satisfying evening
So while the season starts in earnest for Wolfsburg and Bayern tomorrow, it is already underway for Borussia Dortmund, who came away from Austria with a 1-0 win in the UEFA Europa League over Wolfsberg, thanks to Jonas Hofmann's strike.