Pep Guardiola's start to his pre-season campaign ended in defeat as Borussia Dortmund captain Mario Gotze's first half penalty was enough to see off the Premier league champions Manchester City 1-0 at Soldier Field in Chicago.
Guardiola was able to call on the likes of new signing Riyad Mahrez and German leroy Sane but his otherwise highly inexperienced, young team were unable to get the better of a Dortmund side who have already played one game this summer and looked far sharper in the opening match of this year's International Champions Cup tournament.
Gotze's winner came in the 28th minute when American international Christian Pulisic was hauled down in the box allowing the midfielder who famously scored the winning goal in the 2014 World Cup final to beat Claudio Bravo.
Mahrez showed flashes of his quality yet Guardiola will be disappointed about the lack of cutting edge on show.
With the bulk of his Premier league title winning squad enjoying an extended break after their exertions at the World Cup, it was a vastly inexperienced squad sent out by the Spaniard at Soldier Field.
Jack Harrison should have done better just before the interval when he miscued a shot from close range and them Mahrez forced a great save from Dortmund keeper Marwin Hitz.
Nevertheless, Guardiola would have been all too aware of his side's lack of killer instinct.
Joe Hart, the former England keeper, was making his first City appearance since August 2016 but it was opposite number Hitz who was almost beaten on 55 minutes when another Mahrez set-piece flew just past the post.
Bayern outplay PSG
Renato Sanches repaid Niko Kovac’s faith by scoring an impressive free-kick for Bayern Munich against PSG in the International Champions Cup.
The Portuguese midfielder, back in the Bayern set-up after a poor loan spell with Premier league Swansea, whipped a set-piece into the back of the net to win the game for the Germans though it must be said, the PSG wall and deputy goalkeeper should have done better.
Timothy Weah had put the French ahead, slotting home after excellent work from Kévin Rimane in a game which was slow to live up to it’s early billing.
The game was much more of a spectacle in the second half as Javi Martínez scored a powerful header to deny Gianluigi Buffon his first clean sheet for the French side before Sanches scored against deputy stopper Rémy Descamps. Young striker Joshua Zirkzee extended the lead for Bayern as he netted Serge Gnabry’s cross for a comprehensive win.
The first-half lacked much action, it has to be said, as the two teams looked to find their stride in the International Champions Cup. Buffon was called into action on 12 minutes as he dived to palm Oliver Batista-Meier’s scuffed shot away from danger before easily catching Sandro Wagner’s tame left-foot shot from an unkind angle.