Champions League opener in Italy – the ticker for the trip to Turin | OneFootball

On the agenda today:

+++ 19:21 CEST: Press conference with Niko Kovac and Marcel Sabitzer +++We're in the underbelly of the Juventus Stadium. The journalists are already there and want to ask Niko Kovac and Marcel Sabitzer their questions. “The fans will urge Juve forward. For my players, that means that they will need to withstand the pressure. In the pre-season match in Dortmund, you could see the quality that Juve have. The breadth and depth of their squad are immense. We will have to play to our limits tomorrow. The Champions League is something special. It'll be about starting well. This is an important game and we want to show we can get a result here,” said Niko Kovac. The match preview.

+++ 19:10 CEST: Arrival at the hotel +++The team have arrived at the hotel and are welcomed by several fans who are delighted to receive autographs.

+++ 18:40 CEST: Buongiorno from Italy +++Touchdown! BVB have landed punctually in Turin. As they came in to land, the Black & Yellows already had the opportunity to see tomorrow's venue from the air. And that's exactly where they're now heading: to the next and final stop of the day, the press conference.

+++ 16:22 CEST: Arrival of the players +++The Borussia players have arrived at the airport. The EW 1909 Team Airbus is set to take off for Turin with the BVB delegation on board at 17:15 CEST. The expected flight time is one hour and 15 minutes. This is the squad.

+++ 16:10 CEST: Media round +++

Prior to departure for Turin for the first Champions League game of the season, Lars Ricken fielded questions from media representatives. The Managing Director for Sport spoke about the approach, the opposition and the personnel. “I believe we can fly to Turin with tailwind and optimism because we've stabilised and brought consistency to our game," said Ricken.

+++ 13:30 CEST: Final training session +++Autumn has arrived in Dortmund. It is windy and leaves are blowing off the trees. But at 19 degrees Celsius, the majority of the Borussia players are still wearing shorts at the final training session. After Niko Kovac's team talk, the players conduct their running drills and complete their warm-up programme. The Champions League balls then come into play as pairs of players make long passes to each other. After the first 15 minutes, which are open to the media, the team goes behind closed doors to fine-tune their tactics for Tuesday evening.

Pascal Groß is absent from the final training session due to illness. Julian Brandt and Aaron Anselmino, who had to sit out the game in Heidenheim at the weekend, are back in action.

More photos in the picture gallery

The Black & Yellows were frequently outside of the Champions League places last season. But at the end of the campaign, they made an impressive late charge. In their final eight matches, BVB claimed seven victories. The team won their final game of the season against Holstein Kiel by a 3-0 scoreline and thus secured fourth spot in the table. It is that qualification back in May that ensures that Borussia are back in the UEFA Champions League again now.

Today will see the Black & Yellows make their first away trip of the new Champions League season to take on Juventus in Turin tomorrow. The final training session will take place on home turf at the Dortmund-Brackel training ground at lunchtime. In the afternoon, the Eurowings Team Airbus will then take off from Dortmund Airport for Italy. BVB coach Niko Kovac and Marcel Sabitzer will subsequently head to the press conference at the Juventus Stadium (from 19:20 CEST live on BVB TV).