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The pre-season is here for Real Madrid, who will play against Unai Emery's Paris Saint-Germain in Columbus, Ohio. Los Blancos are preparing for the UEFA Supercup, which will be played on August 9th, and they are doing so without Cristiano Ronaldo, meaning that Álvaro Morata must use these friendlies to get used to playing with his teammates and possibly adapt to the left-winger position.
PSG, on the other hand, are facing a rebuild under Unai Emery, who left Sevilla after winning three consecutive UEFA Europa League titles. Zlatan Ibrahimovic has left the club but other big players like Ángel Di María, Marco Verratti and Edinson Cavani are still there. PSG have been quiet all summer long, signing quality players as Krychowiak but not big stars. It will not be easy for Emery to achieve the European glory the club expects from him, but he is also ready to accept this challenge and prove that he is one of Europe's best managers.
Zinedine Zidane confirmed in the pre-match press conference that Sergio Ramos, Luka Modric and James Rodríguez will not feature in this match as they only completed one training session with their teammates. The French coach did not want to announce his starting XI but it looks like Casemiro, Kovacic and Isco will start in the midfield with Lucas Vázquez, Morata and Benzema upfront. Carvajal, Varane, Nacho and Marcelo will defend Kiko Casilla's goal as the keeper tries to gain some momentum ahead of the Supercup because of Keylor Navas' heel injury that will keep the Costa Rican player out of the lineups until at least the start of La Liga.
It will be a huge game for men like Kovacic, Asensio or Jesé, who could earn a spot in the first team if their performances are good enough. It seems that all three of those players will leave on loan, but they will surely try to make an impact and show that they can be useful right now.