Community Shield talking points
London rivals Chelsea and Arsenal do battle at Wembley on Sunday when they meet in the Community Shield.
The traditional curtain-raiser to the new season should carry plenty of intrigue as Jose Mourinho’s Premier League champions take on Arsene Wenger’s FA Cup winners.
Here, we look at what are likely to be the main talking points on the day.
After 11 seasons and 15 major trophies at Stamford Bridge, Petr Cech left Chelsea for Arsenal this summer – much to the chagrin of Mourinho. Whether you claim the Community Shield is competitive or not, it is likely the 33-year-old will now line-up against his former team-mates at Wembley and he will have a point to prove having lost his long-held number one spot to Thibaut Courtois last year.
Wenger has sent out his Arsenal team to face a Mourinho Chelsea outfit on 13 occasions in the past – and has never triumphed. He even saw his Gunners lose 6-0 on his 1000th game in charge and the pair have had plenty of spats down the years. A win for Arsenal on Sunday would not only signal their intent to challenge for the title this season but would also remove an ageing monkey off the Frenchman’s back.
Once one of the hottest properties in European football, Radamel Falcao now has a massive question mark next to his name as he embarks on a season-long loan at Stamford Bridge. The 29-year-old managed just four goals when on a similar deal at Manchester United last season, with the Red Devils unsurprisingly deciding against paying upwards of £40million to make his move from Monaco permanent. Mourinho reckons he can bring the old Falcao back and, if the Colombian is given a chance on Sunday, it will be an early opportunity to see if he is as good as his word.
Emirates Cup success may not be high on many Arsenal fan’s wish-list this season but their impressive displays last weekend highlighted the ability in the next batch of young players coming through the ranks.
Alex Iwobi, nephew of Jay-Jay Okocha, scored and shone in the 6-0 demolition of Lyon before Jeff Reine-Adelaide showed his talents by setting up the only goal and starring in the 1-0 win over Wolfsburg 24 hours later.
.@alexiwobi celebrates scoring his first @Arsenal goal #EmiratesCup2015 pic.twitter.com/IcEqpUWkcU
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) July 25, 2015
Will they be given a chance this season? It remains to be seen but Wenger insists they will not be sent out on loan and Sunday could be a chance to further stake their claims for a place in his first-team squad.
Community Shield is the real deal! Hope we pick a proper solid team! We have to beat Chelsea!
— Supree (@LadyGooner8) July 26, 2015
