Arsenal vs Manchester City: Community Shield – prediction, lineups, teams

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Premier League champions Arsenal face FA Cup holders City in one of the most highly anticipated Community Shield encounters in recent memory. The traditional opener of the English top-flight season is always a chance for early bragging rights among likely title contenders for the campaign ahead. This season’s match, which will be played in Cardiff due to the unavailability of Wembley in London, will see Enzo Maresca take control of City in a competitive game for the first time since he replaced Pep Guardiola as manager. As for Arsenal, their 22-year wait for a Premier League title has not been seen as the start of another golden era for the Gunners; instead, there are questions as to just how strong the defence of the crown will be. Al Jazeera takes a closer look at the match. Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has backed Maresca to do an “unbelievable job” after replacing Guardiola. Arteta, once Guardiola’s assistant at City, paid tribute to his old boss but expects Arsenal’s title rivals to remain a force under former Chelsea manager Maresca. Arteta said of Guardiola, who won 20 major trophies during his 10-year spell in charge of City: “First of all for the Premier League, and for the country, the way he has opened a different way of understanding the game – he has escalated the Premier League to a different level. “I was very lucky to be part of that for four years and understand and witness how it’s done daily. It’s remarkable and unique,” Arteta continued. “I would say that he’s the best coach in the history of football. For many reasons; he’s done it in different countries, in different ways.” City won the FA Cup and League Cup in Guardiola’s final season but finished as Premier League runners-up behind Arsenal. Arteta, who ended Arsenal’s 22-year wait for a Premier League title, added: “It’s been a pleasure and now it’s Enzo. I know him well and he will provide something different to the club. “What I know is that Enzo has the personality, the character, and especially the knowledge to have an unbelievable job there. “That’s why he’s been selected, because they could probably pick anybody and they’ve gone for Enzo for the right reasons. “He has demonstrated that at every level – what he’s done in the Champions League and what he’s done when he’s been at Chelsea and now here, so I have no doubt that he will do a great job.” Arteta gave little away on reports the Gunners are looking to sign Bayer Leverkusen defender Jarell Quansah after failing to persuade Aston Villa to sell Ezri Konsa. “We want to improve the squad,” he said. “We want to evolve the squad in order to achieve that.” The Gunners manager did, however, reassure the club’s fans about his contract, which expires at the end of the season. “They don’t have to worry about any of that, because I want to be here,” Arteta said. City manager Maresca, meanwhile, said “anything can happen” amid reports La Liga champions Barcelona have bid to sign World Cup winner Rodri. City are understood to have rejected an opening bid of 38.5 million pounds ($52m) from Barcelona for the midfielder. The 30-year-old has just one season remaining on his deal at the Etihad and has been strongly linked with a return to his native Spain. City are reported to want nearly double the opening offer for Rodri, who was named player of the tournament at the recent World Cup in North America. Barcelona could now come back with an increased offer for Rodri, which in turn may lead to a City move for Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez. Rodri was the last City player to report for preseason training, only arriving back on Friday, having had back surgery after starring in Spain’s World Cup triumph. “First of all, we already said the transfer window is open, we can buy and sell players, anything can happen,” Maresca said. Rodri joined City from Atletico Madrid in 2019, winning multiple Premier League titles and the 2023 Champions League. He also won Euro 2024 and that year’s Ballon d’Or before a serious knee injury sidelined him for much of the 2024-25 campaign. Chelsea were reported to have set a Friday deadline concerning an offer for Fernandez, but that has come and gone. City have already bought England’s Elliot Anderson following Bernardo Silva’s exit, but fellow midfielder Tijjani Reijnders is on the verge of joining Saudi club Al Qadsiah. Arsenal finished seven points ahead of second-placed City last term, and Maresca pledged his men would do all they could to close the gap to Arteta’s men this season. “Arsenal have shown in the last two or three or four, five years, that they are always there,” said Maresca. “It is a fantastic team from Mikel. “They showed how good they are. But at the same time, we are City and we’re going to try to close the gap and compete.” City were 2-1 winners in the last encounter between the sides when they met in the Premier League in April. The late-season fixture at Etihad Stadium threatened to blow open the title race as Rayan Cherki and Kai Havertz scored within two minutes of each other in the first half, before Erling Haaland netted the winner midway through the second period. City’s win cut Arsenal’s lead to three points, but the stutters returned for Guardiola’s side, allowing the Gunners to fire their way to the winning line. Opta, the sport analysts, have used their supercomputer to predict the outcome, with Arsenal given a 45 percent chance of victory in 90 minutes, while Manchester City were given a 30 percent chance. The draw, which would result in a penalty shootout, stood at 25 percent. This will be the 217th meeting between the sides, with Arsenal winning 100 of the encounters and City emerging victorious on 67 occasions. Arteta said England duo Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka could be involved in the Community Shield, with new signings Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis also likely to feature. Raya; White, Mosquera, Gabriel, Hincapie; Guimaraes, Lewis-Skelly; Madueke, Odegaard, Tzolis; Havertz City have Erling Haaland back in training after the World Cup, but the 26-year-old is set to start on the bench as he is eased back into action. Savinho missed training earlier this week due to illness, while Reijnders is on the cusp of a move, so it is not clear what part he will play. Rodri is also absent following his back operation. 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