Two World Cup winners could grace opposing sides of the Mercedes-Benz Arena pitch on Saturday as VfB Stuttgart and Benjamin Pavard welcome Antoine Griezmann's Atletico Madrid for a mouth-watering pre-season friendly (16:45 CEST / 14:45 GMT / 10:45 ET).
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Stuttgart have gone unbeaten in their summer friendlies thus far as they gear up for their 2018/19 Matchday 1 encounter at Mainz on 26 August, most recently producing victories over Spanish side SD Eibar and Turkosh outfit Basaksehir. After narrowly missing out on UEFA Europa League qualification last term, Tayfun Korkut has strengthened his side with the arrivals of Gonzalo Castro (Borussia Dortmund), Daniel Didavi (Wolfsburg) and Pablo Maffeo (Manchester City) over the summer, adding greater strength in depth to his squad. Mario Gomez could feature here after returning to training following the World Cup and although Pavard is unlikely to make an appearance, he should be in attendance following his extended break.
This match is only Atletico's third friendly over the summer so far following their International Champions Cup encounters with Arsenal (a 3-1 win on penalties) and Paris Saint-Germain (a 3-2 defeat). The big names in the side, including Griezmann, Diego Godin and Diego Costa, have returned to training after participating at the World Cup but this game could come too soon for them to feature.
Watch: Gomez hailed Stuttgart's "Atletico-esque defending" in a 1-0 victory over Borussia Mönchengladbach last season
Probable line-ups
Stuttgart: Zieler - Beck, Baumgartl, Badstuber, Insua - Castro, Didavi, Aogo - Gentner, Thommy - Gomez Absentees: Ascacibar (adductor), Pavard (break after World Cup)Coach: Tayfun Korkut
Atletico: Oblak - Juanfran, Moya, Montero Olabe - Correa, Hernandez, Fandino, Lemar - Vietto, GameiroAbsentees: Godin, Jimenez, Hernandez, Felipe Luis, Griezmann, Costa (training catch-up after World Cup break)Coach: Diego Simeone