Manchester City managed to land a historic treble last season although they actually missed out on the Community Shield at the beginning of the campaign. A 3-1 defeat to Liverpool suggested that Erling Haaland might need time to get off the mark, although the Norwegian was quickly in his stride when the campaign began and he’s likely to start this game.
City enter the new season without the influential Ilkay Gundogan and we’ve also seen Riyad Mahrez depart, although they are still likely to have a strong line-up here. It might be that Kevin de Bruyne doesn’t play any part in a bid to be fit for the beginning of the season, with Jack Grealish and Phil Foden the potential danger men.
Arsenal are trading at a big price to land a victory and perhaps Mikel Arteta will want to lay down a marker, with Declan Rice having agreed to sign for the Gunners despite interest from City. There was also the slightly less predictable signing of Kai Havertz, although we might see the triumvirate of Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli line up behind Gabriel Jesus.
In terms of the best bets for the 2023 Community Shield game, it could be worth considering Arsenal and both teams to score, with the sides likely to make plenty of changes throughout the ninety minutes in a bid to keep things fresh. This is the final chance for both managers to make the necessary amendments before the new season begins in earnest.