Manchester City conclude their preparations for the new campaign against Liverpool in the FA Community Shield on Saturday evening.
The Blues' tour of the United States went as well as they could have hoped, grabbing a win against both Club América and defending Bundesliga Champions Bayern Munich.
In their match against the German side, all of the spotlight was cast on Erling Haaland as he made his debut for the Cityzens, scoring what turned out to be the winning goal in the 12th minute.
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Another notable starter was Ederson, who sat out of Manchester City’s first game against Club América.
The Brazilian kept a clean sheet, which in due part should be credited to the Blues’ defence, who allowed only three shots from the Bavarians.
One of these defenders was Josh Wilson-Esbrand, who started at left-back, making some very aggressive plays both offensively and defensively.
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Four first-team players were missing from Pep Guardiola’s squad throughout the tour of the United States, as Phil Foden, John Stones, Ilkay Gundogan and Aymeric Laporte stayed in Europe, with former trio accompanying the Under-23 team in their tour of Croatia.
It wouldn’t be a surprise to see one or more of the trio find their way into the Catalan’s starting line-up for the Community Shield on Saturday.
Liverpool made it into the Community Shield after beating Chelsea in a penalty shoot-out in the FA Cup final earlier this year.
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The Merseyside club had a similar pre-season to the Cityzens, despite a 4-0 loss to Manchester United in Thailand.
Granted, Liverpool did redeem themselves with an impressive 5-0 victory over RB Leipzig.
The last meeting between Manchester City and Liverpool was in the FA Cup semi-final, where the Reds won 3-2, making their way to the final for the first time since 2012.
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When?
The Community Shield will kick-off at 17:00 (UK) on Saturday 30th July.
Where?
The Community Shield will be held at Leicester City’s King Power Stadium instead of the competition’s usual home, Wembley Stadium.
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The change in venue was made due to the UEFA Women’s Euro Final, which is being held at Wembley Stadium on Sunday 31st July.
How to Watch?
For viewers in the UK, you can watch the match on ITV1, UTV, STV. Viewers in the United States can watch the match on ESPN+ starting at 12:00 P.M. EST.
Topics: Manchester City, Liverpool, Community Shield
Declan Harris