Manchester United, Borussia Dortmund ready for Las Vegas showdown

Manchester United right back Diogo Dalot has been to the West Coast once in the past.

In 2018, the Portuguese defender was just 19 years old and preparing for his first preseason tour after joining Manchester United from FC Porto when the Red Devils landed in California for a series of preseason friendly matches.

He’s never been to Las Vegas.

“It’s a pretty good city with a lot of things to do,” Dalot said. “We’re not going to have time to enjoy the city as much as we’d like to, I’m sure, but we’re just going to go in, play a game and try to develop as a team.”

Dalot and Manchester United will play their final preseason game in the U.S. at 6 p.m. Sunday at Allegiant Stadium against German club Borussia Dortmund.

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag said it will be a strong opportunity for his players to continue preparing for the upcoming season and a final chance for them to interact with their American fans.

“We want to show ourselves to our fans in Las Vegas, hope for a full stadium,” ten Hag said. “We have an attractive opponent, a good opponent, so it will be a good test.”

Manchester United enters the 2023-24 season hoping to continue the progress it has made under ten Hag. The Dutch manager is entering his second season after leading the Red Devils back to the Champions League with a third-place finish in the English Premier League last season.

Ten Hag also guided Manchester United to the Carabao Cup this year, the club’s first trophy since 2017. The club also reached the FA Cup final, losing to crosstown rival Manchester City.

This summer, ten Hag brought sweeping changes to the club. Spanish goalkeeper David de Gea did not have his contract renewed after 12 years with the team. Manchester United replaced him with Cameroonian goalkeeper Andre Onana, who joined from Italian club Inter Milan for a $57.4 million fee plus add-ons.

Ten Hag also added English midfielder Mason Mount, who could cost up to $75.7 million depending on incentives, from Chelsea.

Mount and Onana join a core that includes Portuguese midfielder and captain Bruno Fernandes, English winger Marcus Rashford, French central defender Raphael Varane, Brazilian midfielder Casemiro, English left back Luke Shaw and Argentine central defender and 2022 World Cup winner Lisandro Martinez.

Ten Hag said he hopes some of his young players step up and prove they’re ready to join the first team during the final games of the tour.

Manchester United’s opponent has some firepower of its own. Borussia Dortmund finished second in the German Bundesliga last season, tied on points with archrival Bayern Munich but losing out on the title because of goal differential.

Dortmund drew with Mainz 2-2 on the last day of the season when a win would have clinched its first title since 2012.

Dortmund also has a second-year coach in Edin Terzic, whose first season far surpassed expectations. Dortmund returns German defenders Nico Schlotterbeck, Mats Hummels and Niklas Sule, Dutch winger Donyell Malen, German winger Marco Reus, German midfielder and captain Emre Can and Ivory Coast striker Sebastien Haller, who miraculously returned after an eight-month absence because of testicular cancer last season.

Austrian midfielder Marcel Sabitzer, Dortmund’s new signing who joined from Bayern Munich for a fee between $17 million and $22 million, most recently played on loan at Manchester United in 2022-23 before his season ended early because of a knee injury.

Dortmund also features American midfielder Giovanni Reyna, but lost English midfielder Jude Bellingham, who departed for Real Madrid for a fee of $107 million.

Contact reporter Andy Yamashita at ayamashita@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ANYamashita on Twitter.