Jose Mourinho returns to the Community Shield Final with Chelsea for the first time since his return to west London, against a manger he is yet to lose too.
Sunday’s fixture will kick off at 3pm at Wembley and will be the 14th between the two managers, with none of these being won by the Frenchman at the Gunners.
However, his side will go into this game with confidence after an impressive pre-season, and their capture of ex-Blues goalkeeper Petr Cech.
During his time at Chelsea, the 33-year-old won the Community Shield twice, but is now preparing to start inbetween the posts for Arsenal, for the first time in a competitive fixture.
Cech will be the only new face in the line-up for the Gunners, who are without key man Alexis Sanchez. Meanwhile, the Blues’ line-up will be similar to the constant one that won the Premier League title with ease last campaign.
New signings Radamel Falcao and Asmir Begovic have been the biggest new faces within Chelsea. After such a dominant season, only losing three times, you can see why Mourinho has tried not to change it around too much. Why change a winning mentality?
Team News
Both Diego Costa and Gary Cahill are fit for the game, after worries that injuries picked up vs Barcelona in their final pre-season game in America would rule them both out. The English centre back left the pitch with what people thought was a broken nose, whilst the Spanish striker limped off over worries with his hamstring again. However, both have been passed as fit by the Premier League champions, with Costa now fighting for a starting place with both Loic Remy and Radamel Falcao lurking.
For the Gunners, Petr Cech is likely to start against his former side, but Chilean international Alexis Sanchez will not feautre as he has an extended break following the Copa America.
Stats
FA Cup winners have only won one of the last five Community Shield finals, although that was Arsene Wenger’s side last season.
Against Chelsea, the Gunners have gone 482 minutes without finding the net.
After failing to win their first three games at the new Wembley, Arsenal are now unbeaten in their last 4 at the fantastic stadium.
Out of Chelsea’s last 13 games, they’ve won eight.
The last two red cards that were shown in the Community Shield final were for these two sides. Branislav Ivanovic was sent off for the Blues in the 2012 fixture, whilst Francis Jeffers saw Red for the Gunners in 2003.
In the new Wembley, both teams have never not scored in their games.
Writers prediction: Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal.
