Two of Europe's heavyweights will lock horns this evening as Bayern Munich take on Real Madrid in the final of the 2015 Audi Cup.
Bayern look to be in great form after their destruction of Italian giants AC Milan in their previous fixture in this summer's tournament. And in front of their own fans will look to raise the trophy, which could mark their pre-season as complete.
Bayern are likely to feature a similarly strong attacking line-up against Madrid as they put out against Milan with the impressive Brazilian Douglas Costa, who only just recently joined the Munich side continuing in the front three.
Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola has told reporters before the game that he doesn't consider the matches against Real anything special and is purely focusing on getting his team ready for the upcoming season.
Guardiola is a product of the Barcelona youth academy and despite his history of rivalry with Los Blancos he is not getting carried away with this match.
Guardiola said, "Playing Madrid is nothing special to me."
Guardiola will, however, be hoping that the game against Real doesn't evoke the kind of anger from him that followed his side's match with Milan after the Spaniard confronted Milan midfielder Nigel de Jong in the tunnel at half time, after he felt the Dutchman had deliberately tried to injure one of his players.
For Real this will be another match without their superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and as such they will arrive as underdogs, but with in-form youngster Jese as well as playmakers Isco and James Rodriguez starring in their previous match against Tottenham, Madrid will still pose a very potent threat going forward.
Expect Keylor Navas to continue in goal for Real despite persistent rumors that his place in the side may be given over to David de Gea of Manchester United.
Navas will want to impress new boss Rafa Benitez against one of Europe's best sides in Bayern in order to convince the Spanish coach of his worth as number one.
The game could see also Bayern midfielder Xavi Alonso line-up against his former side. Madrid have struggle to replace the Spanish international and it will be interesting to see how their current crop of midfielders match up against him.
Madrid will know that the last time they entered the Allianz to face a Bayern team they came away 4-0 winners and will feel confident about their chances once more in front of the many Bayern fans that will inevitably fill the stands.
Home advantage could well prove key to the game, however, and expect Bayern to take a narrow win.
When: Wednesday 5th August
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Kick-Off: 20:45 CEST
Live Stream:ESPN Player
TV: ESPN2 , ESPN Deportes
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