Community Shield - as it happened: Manchester City outclass Chelsea to get season up and running
Re-live all the action from Wembley Stadium
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Your support makes all the difference.Premier League champions Manchester City take on FA Cup winners Chelsea in the annual Community Shield top raise the curtain on the new football campaign, just three weeks after the World Cup brought last season to a conclusion.
With the Premier League set to get underway next weekend, City and Chelsea will play out the traditional fixture at Wembley for the first trophy of the season, although its importance this year has been even more diminished by the absence of many World Cup stars as they enjoy a much-deserved holiday.
City are set to be without a number of players, including star midfielders Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling, but could hand a full debut to £60m summer signing Riyad Mahrez, while Chelsea are set to feature Jorginho for the first time. Eden Hazard remains an absentee though as he remains on holiday along with the likes of Thibaut Courtois, Michy Batshuayi, N’Golo Kante and Olivier Giroud, while Willian remains AWOL following what he claimed were “passport problems” that delayed his return from Brazil.
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What time does it start?
Manchester City vs Chelsea kicks off at 15:00 BST on Sunday 5 August.
Where can I watch it?
The match will be shown live on BT Sport 1 from 14:00 BST.
Team news
Manchester City without Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling (all holiday), Joe Hart (unpicked), Danilo (injured).
Chelsea without Thibaut Courtois, Gary Cahill, N’Golo Kante, Michy Batshuayi, Olivier Giroud (all holiday), Willian (absent), Cesc Fabregas (injured).
Odds
Manchester City to win: 21/20
Chelsea to win: 13/5
Draw (after 90 minutes): 13/5
(Odds provided by Betfair)
Prediction
Manchester City 2-0 Chelsea: Both sides are expected to field weaker sides, but having not been overly active in the transfer market the players should already have a strong bond together. City’s defence is about as full-strength as it can be that should see them prevail, and with Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus fit, they should have no problem finding the back of the net.
Not a bad seven months for Benjamin Mendy considering he's spent so much time on the sidelines...
Thanks for joining us for the curtain raiser of this season's Premier League. On the basis of that one Manchester City are poised to challenge to retain their title, whilst Maurizio Sarri has plenty to think about ahead of the season.
We'll have all the Premier League action when it finally begins, but first the latest transfer news for Thursday's deadline day drama.
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