2026/27 Season Week 1
If you followed my 2026 FIFA World Cup coverage here at VSiN, thank you. It was a great six weeks getting back into writing and I’m excited to be continuing with a weekly article for the new European club season.
Each week, I’ll break down two European fixtures alongside an anytime goalscorer profile where I’ll take a deep look at one player I like to find the net that weekend.
Germany’s two biggest sides kick things off this weekend in the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup, and so do we.
Borussia Dortmund vs Bayern Munich | Franz Beckenbauer Supercup | Final
Saturday, August 22 | 2:30 PM ET | Signal Iduna Park | Dortmund, Germany | Watch: USA Network
The first trophy of the season is up for grabs at Signal Iduna Park on Saturday when Borussia Dortmund host Bayern Munich in Der Klassiker. If you’ve followed German football in recent years, you’ll know Bayern have dominated this fixture, winning 11 of the last 15 meetings. It’s hard to see this run not extending to 12 out of 16 when the full-time whistle blows.
Vincent Kompany had Bayern playing some of the best soccer in Europe last season, winning 28 of 34 Bundesliga matches, scoring 122 goals and losing just once on the way to the title. They completed a domestic double by adding the DFB-Pokal with a 3-0 demolition of VfB Stuttgart in the final. That’s a great platform for Kompany’s third season in charge. Bayern will expect to retain the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal, and after a Champions League semifinal exit to PSG last season, they’ll be focused on going all the way in Europe.
The summer has been sharp for Die Roten. The only notable departures are Leon Goretzka and Raphaël Guerreiro, both the wrong side of 30 and both struggling to hit their best form last season. What matters more is they’ve managed to keep all of their star players. Their most important piece of business was fending off Real Madrid’s €150+ million advances for Michael Olise.
Beyond that, they’ve made two smart additions. Ismael Saibari arrives from PSV Eindhoven for €50 million after a breakout 2026 World Cup with Morocco, where he scored in all three group games. He’s 25, plays attacking midfield, adds creativity and can lead the line in Harry Kane’s absence if needed. Nathaniel Brown joins from Eintracht Frankfurt for the same fee after an impressive tournament with Germany—he scored and assisted in the 7-1 demolition of Curaçao. He brings much-needed coverage at left-back for Alphonso Davies, who has struggled with injuries recently.
Their opponents Dortmund have lost established first-team players in Julian Brandt, Niklas Süle and Karim Adeyemi without replacing them with anything close to the same quality. The experienced signings are 27-year-old Joey Veerman from PSV Eindhoven and 23-year-old Giannis Konstantelias from PAOK in the Greek Super League—solid players, but it’s difficult to see both in the starting eleven when the squad is fully fit and available. Every other addition has been 20 or younger.
The injury picture makes it worse. Club captain Emre Can is battling back from a torn ACL in his left knee. Vice-captain Nico Schlotterbeck is sidelined with a severe left ankle ligament tear he suffered at the World Cup.
Looking at their formations in preseason, Niko Kovač is persisting with a back three, which leaves them short of coverage with Schlotterbeck and Can out. It’s telling that the Dortmund manager publicly admitted this summer he doesn’t see his side challenging Bayern for the title, citing the financial gap and depth of talent at the Allianz Arena.
Bayern are a complete team with a settled manager, a strengthened squad and a point to prove after falling short in Europe. Dortmund are rebuilding with potential they can develop and sell, undermanned in defense and missing their leaders. The Yellow Wall will be deafening, but it won’t be enough.
Back Bayern to lift the first trophy of the season with a comfortable win.
Pick: Same Game Parlay Bayern Munich Moneyline (-155) and Bayern Team Total Over 1.5 Goals (-253) = -135
Atalanta vs Sassuolo | Serie A | Matchday 1
Sunday, August 23 | 2:45 PM ET | New Balance Arena | Bergamo, Italy | Watch: Paramount+
Serie A kicks off this weekend and one of the opening fixtures involves Atalanta hosting Sassuolo. I was at the New Balance Arena in September 2024 when Atalanta came from behind twice to beat Fiorentina 3-2—all five goals in the first half, including two in stoppage time to snatch the lead. The atmosphere was electric, and on the walk to the stadium, it felt like the whole of Bergamo came out for the match. Atalanta under Gian Piero Gasperini didn’t do low-scoring affairs, and while that era is over, the attacking talent in this squad hasn’t gone anywhere.
What has changed is everything else. Gasperini—the man who built the club’s identity over nine seasons and led them to the UEFA Europa League title in 2024—left for Roma last summer. Ivan Jurić was the first manager tasked with filling Gasperini’s boots and was relieved of his duties in November after a seven-match winless run. Raffaele Palladino steadied the ship and guided them to seventh, but the club decided to part ways with him too. Enter Maurizio Sarri.
American soccer fans may know Sarri from his season at Chelsea, where he won the Europa League in 2019. Italian football fans know him for something deeper: “Sarriball,” a possession-heavy, patient, build-from-the-back system that demands precise positional play and takes time to implement and perfect. It’s the opposite of the aggressive man-marking and verticality that defined the Gasperini era in Bergamo. Sarri’s competitive debut was Thursday’s 0-0 draw with Hapoel Tel Aviv in the UEFA Europa Conference League (UECL) playoff first leg—a match where Atalanta controlled possession but failed to make the most of their nine shots and two big chances. This is a squad still learning “Sarriball” and that takes months, not weeks, on the training ground.
There’s also a midweek distraction looming. Atalanta travel to Hungary next Wednesday for the second leg against Hapoel Tel Aviv. Sarri will have one eye on that match. Qualifying for the UECL is a bare minimum requirement the board have tasked him with.
On the other side, Sassuolo are going through their own tactical reset. Alberto Aquilani takes charge for his first ever Serie A match after replacing Fabio Grosso, who departed for Fiorentina. American fans of a certain age might remember Aquilani as the Liverpool midfielder who never quite got going at Anfield after arriving from Roma in 2009.
As a manager, he impressed at Catanzaro in Serie B, taking them to the promotion playoff final with an ultra-fluid possession style inspired by Tottenham Hotspur’s Roberto De Zerbi—who built his reputation managing this very club from 2018 to 2021. Aquilani’s playing style involves high-risk build-ups, active goalkeepers, aggressive man-oriented pressing and constant positional rotations. It’s a dramatic shift from Grosso’s direct, defensively disciplined 4-3-3 that relied on vertical transitions and functional stability. Sassuolo’s players are adapting to an entirely new way of playing.
With both teams adapting to new systems under new managers, this has goals written all over it. Atalanta have the firepower to overwhelm Sassuolo at home—Scamacca, Raspadori and Samardzic give Sarri three genuine goal threats, even if they haven’t found their full attacking rhythm yet. I think Sassuolo can get on the scoresheet as well. Center back Giorgio Scalvini was forced off early against Hapoel Tel Aviv with new signing Thomas Kristensen replacing him. If there’s any chance Scalvini is fit for Thursday’s second leg, Sarri won’t risk him here. A new center back pairing in a system Atalanta are still learning will lead to opportunities for Aquilani’s players.
Back both teams to find the net in a match that goes over 2.5 goals.
Pick: Same Game Parlay Both Teams To Score Yes (-130) and Over 2.5 Goals (-150) = +106
Rennes vs PSG | Ligue 1 | Matchday 1
Sunday, August 23 | 2:45 PM ET | Roazhon Park | Rennes, France | Watch: beIN Sports
If the World Cup was your first time watching soccer, there’s a good chance you haven’t heard of PSG’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. There’s even less chance you’ll pronounce his name correctly on your first attempt. Georgia didn’t qualify for the 2026 World Cup, which means Kvaratskhelia has had the summer off to rest and a full preseason under Luis Enrique for the first time since joining PSG.
You’ve likely heard of his attacking teammates Ousmane Dembélé, Désiré Doué and Bradley Barcola, who all played for France throughout the tournament. You’ve definitely heard of PSG’s latest signing Ferran Torres, who scored the winning goal for Spain in the final. All have joined PSG’s preseason preparations late and it will take them a few weeks to get match fit and up to full speed. In the opening weeks and for Sunday’s game against Rennes, Luis Enrique will lean on Kvaratskhelia to be the focal point of PSG’s attack.
The first thing you’ll notice about Kvaratskhelia is the work rate. This is not a winger who floats through matches waiting for the ball to arrive at his feet. He presses, he tracks back, he wins the ball in dangerous areas, and then he destroys you going the other way. Off the ball, he’s arguably the best winger in the world right now. On it, he’s a dynamic attacker with two exceptional feet that make him unpredictable and a nightmare for defenders.
If you look at his Ligue 1 numbers last season, eight goals in 28 appearances doesn’t jump off the page—but there’s important context. In 2024-25, after winning the Champions League, PSG competed in the inaugural FIFA Club World Cup from June 14 through the July 13 final against Chelsea. Thirty-one days later they were playing Tottenham in the UEFA Super Cup. Enrique rotated heavily in Ligue 1 to manage fatigue, prioritizing the Champions League. Kvaratskhelia’s league minutes were managed, meaning he only started 18 games in 28 appearances and averaged 53 minutes a match.
This year the script is reversed. Kvaratskhelia is rested, sharp and the one established PSG attacker who has had a full preseason in Enrique’s system. In the Champions League he was PSG’s most decisive player through the knockout rounds, contributing 10 goals and 6 assists in 16 appearances and winning the penalty in the final against Arsenal. That kind of form has put him in the Ballon d’Or conversation despite not playing at the World Cup—a testament to his quality.
PSG’s opener against Rennes has been relocated at short notice to Rennes’ Roazhon Park after the pitch at the Parc des Princes deteriorated in extreme heat to the point where the club said conditions did not allow the match to be held safely. It’s an unusual disruption, but it doesn’t change anything about my pick. Kvaratskhelia is the one PSG attacker Enrique will rely on this weekend, and we should too.
There’s a reason the fans at his former club Napoli dubbed him “Kvaradona.” Back him to score.
Pick: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia Anytime Goalscorer = +105
