Competitive English football returns to
our screens on Saturday in the form of
the Football League, but Sunday gives
us the chance to watch two Premier
League sides go head-to-head at
Wembley Stadium.
The Community Shield, the traditional
curtain-raiser for the new season, is
upon us. Unlike last year, where Wigan
Athletic met Manchester United in a
decidedly one-sided encounter,
Arsenal and Manchester City—two UEFA
Champions League contestants—will
lock horns to excite us in North
London.
Arsenal Setup
Arsenal toyed with a bit of 4-4-2 at
the end of last season and showed us
a glimpse of the 4-3-3 at the Emirates
Cup, but we expect a solid 4-2-3-1
outlook here.
The three Germans—Mesut Ozil, Per
Mertesacker and Lukas Podolski—still
haven't kicked a pre-season ball yet,
and Yaya Sanogo may miss the clash
with a hamstring strain picked up
against Benfica.
It leaves Arsene Wenger short on his
best players, but not short on numbers:
Calum Chambers will fill in for
Mertesacker, and an incredibly deep
midfield can handle a re-shuffle with
ease.
We could see a 4-3-3 with Mathieu
Flamini/Mikel Arteta, Jack Wilshere
and Aaron Ramsey, but the 4-2-3-1 is
a safer bet.
Manchester City Setup
City have played their usual-looking
4-4-2 in pre-season for the most part,
and Manuel Pellegrini should stick
with the system here.
With several unavailable due to FIFA
World Cup 2014 exertions, Bacary
Sagna and Fernando could make their
"official" debuts, though the former is
under threat from a relocated Gael
Clichy.
Yaya Toure and David Silva are
question marks, but the star performer
in pre-season has been Jesus Navas on
the right. He and Samir Nasri both
missed the World Cup in Brazil this
summer and look fresh as a daisy.
Key Area No. 1 : City's Zonal vs
Arsenal's Runners
When dropping into a defensive shell
in a 4-4-2, City spread their lines
across the pitch and tend to mark
zonally. They're nearly always
outnumbered three vs. two in the
middle so they can't man-mark, and
it's up to whomever plays the roles to
decide when to step in and confront
the opposition.
Very good dribblers can tempt City into
mistakes in this region, as Barcelona
did by pushing Andres Iniesta and
Lionel Messi forward to create lanes in
the Champions League last season.
Arsenal have an abundance of
dribbling talent, with Ramsey, Wilshere
and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain the most
likely to draw a marker out and
spring into the space he leaves behind.
Key Area No. 2 : The Debuchy-Kolarov
Flank
With Mathieu Debuchy and Aleksandar
Kolarov set to line up against each
other and spar, there's a chance the
game is won and lost on their
touchline.
If City can pin Debuchy back, test his
limited defensive mettle and push
Kolarov beyond him, low crosses into
the box for Stevan Jovetic and Edin
Dzeko become a clear danger. The
former has been in scintillating,
predatory form during pre-season, and
the Kolarov-Dzeko connection is well
forged.
But as much as this represents a
concern for Arsenal, it also presents a
chance to attack. If City over-commit
and overstep, there are few more
fearsome right-backs surging forward
than Debuchy.
The ol' "switcheroo" can become their
route to success.
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