German Supercup 2019: Borussia Dortmund vs Bayern Munich - Combined XI

Right-back: Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich)

Is Kimmich the best right-back in the world?

Kimmich's versatility makes it easy to forget he's still only 24 - such is the precocious talent we're dealing with here.

Barring the goalkeeper and the center-forward, the German has been deployed in every other position in his short career so far and has excelled in each of them.

But it's the right-back position where he's shone the most with 26 assists in Bundesliga in the last two seasons - more than anyone else in that period.

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Center-back: Manuel Akanji (Borussia Dortmund)

Switzerland's Akanji has been such a vital addition for Dortmund

The Swiss star has proved to be a palliative to Dortmund's long-standing defensive woes since arriving at the Signal Iduna Park in 2018.

Strong, confident aggressive and athletically gifted, Akanji has brought a sense of robustness to the backline which turned Der BVB into a mean outfit last season.

He averaged 3.5 clearances a game and also maintained a 93% passing accuracy. Akanji's partnership with the homecoming Hummels can beef up the defense further.

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Center-back: Benjamin Pavard (Bayern Munich)

Pavard's official debut for Bayern will be worth keeping an eye on

Mats Hummels may have had a fine season last time, but the meteoric rise of Pavard is just too hard to ignore. The young Frenchman carried on from his 2018 World Cup heroics for a brilliant campaign personally with Stuttgart, which eventually landed him a move to Bayern.

His ability to play as a center-back, right-back, and even a defensive midfielder is set to offer great tactical flexibility to Kovac this season, and as we witnessed in Russia, is capable of pulling a rabbit out of his hat with wonderful strikes.

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Left-back: David Alaba (Bayern Munich)

Alaba remains an important piece in the Bayern puzzle

Now in his ninth season with the Bavarian side, Alaba has long established himself as one of the best left-backs in the world.

He's a strong creative force down the left-wing while his ability from the Deadball is second to none. The Austrian scored and assisted thrice each last season, a stark reminder of his attacking prowess.