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No easy introductions

The reigning French and German champions have tough assignments as the English and Dutch leagues kick off.

Frau faces Sochaux
In Ligue 1, Olympique Lyonnais striker Pierre-Alain Frau - fresh from his first France call-up - meets his former club FC Sochaux-Montbéliard on Saturday. Lyon began their title defence with a 1-0 success at OGC Nice, their first curtain-raising win for more than 20 years, while Sochaux prevailed by the same score against AC Ajaccio.

Rothen reunion
Paris Saint-Germain FC bid to kick-start their campaign against promoted SM Caen, who will host the game in Nimes while their own ground is under construction. PSG went down 2-1 at Stade Rennais FC last week, but will field new signing Jérôme Rothen against the side who gave him his professional break.

Istres ambition
Caen drew their opener with fellow newcomers FC Istres, who also face a tough test at AS Monaco FC. On Sunday Lille OSC - who lead the way after beating AJ Auxerre 2-0 - visit Olympique de Marseille, having warmed up on Tuesday with a 0-0 UEFA Intertoto Cup final first-leg draw at Portugal's UD Leiria.

Bremen's tough trip
German title-holders Werder Bremen kicked off with a 1-0 win against FC Schalke 04, but on Saturday travel to an unhappy hunting ground, FC Hansa Rostock. Bremen's celebrations were marred last season by a 3-1 final-day defeat at Rostock, and coach Thomas Schaaf is without injured trio Ümit Davala, Krisztian Lisztes and Daniel Jensen. He may hand a debut to Brazilian newcomer Gustavo Nery.

Stuttgart test
The top two after the opening round of fixtures, VfB Stuttgart and promoted 1. FC Nürnberg, come face to face. Stuttgart won 4-2 against top-flight arrivals 1. FSV Mainz 05 last week, while Nürnberg prevailed 3-1 at 1. FC Kaiserslautern. FC Bayern München expect to have Sebastian Deisler available to play Hertha BSC Berlin despite a bout of flu.

Stadium debuts
Two grounds stage their first Bundesliga matches. Mainz's Stadion am Mainzer Bruchweg welcomes Hamburger SV while VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach's new Borussia-Park is a 53,000 sell-out as they play BV Borussia Dortmund.

Hannover fixture postponed
Schalke, 2-1 winners against FC Slovan Liberec in their Intertoto Cup final first leg, entertain Kaiserslautern. However, Hannover 96's game against DSC Arminia Bielefeld is postponed until 15 September due to building work at their stadium.

English launch
Arsenal FC launch their bid to retain the English Premiership title against Everton FC on Sunday, when contenders Chelsea FC and Manchester United FC meet at Stamford Bridge. The other games are the previous day. Click here for a full preview.

Dutch debut
The Dutch Eredivisie starts on Friday, but champions AFC Ajax are not in action until Sunday when they visit FC Twente. Click here for a full preview.

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