Premier League winners Arsenal are hoping to add to their trophy cabinet as they lock horns with FA Cup winners Manchester City in the Community Shield on Sunday.
The Gunners are hoping to build on their first league title in over 20 years this season as they look to go back-to-back in the league.
They've been active in the transfer market, bringing in Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis, and they will feel as though those two high quality additions bring an overall improvement to the squad.
The World Cup has botched their preparations for this season somewhat, with Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka yet to play a pre-season game - both of whom were also carrying injuries during the World Cup - while William Saliba is unlikely to feature for the Gunners until later in the year following back surgery.
Arsenal's pre-season results have been mixed on the whole, with the Gunners beating Girona, losing to Betis and Borussia Dortmund and drawing with Como.
Young players such as Myles Lewis-Skelly, Max Dowman and Marli Salmon have enjoyed strong and valuable runouts, while Ethan Nwaneri has also showed moments of real quality at a time where his Arsenal future is uncertain.
Manchester City face their first season without Pep Guardiola at the helm since 2015-16. The Sky Blues have gone two seasons without a league title, which is their longest run without a Premier League crown since they went three seasons without one following their victorious 2013-14 campaign under Manuel Pellegrini.
City have brought in Elliot Anderson over the summer and look to be in the market for further big money additions, but as of now their squad is looking a tad thin. Rodri looks destined to leave for Barcelona and Bernardo Silva has already departed, meaning City essentially need a whole new rebuild.
Erling Haaland and Elliot Anderson returned from pre-season only on Wednesday and are not likely to be fit enough to play a big role here. Rayan Cherki also hasn't played in pre-season and won't feature too heavily in this one.
Tijjani Reijnders and Mateo Kovacic look set to start in midfield on Sunday, which is a far cry from the quality of last season and certainly not a midfield you'd expect from a prospective Premier League champion - with respect to the pair, who are both very good players in their own right.
City haven't been tested a great deal in pre-season, beating a K-League Stars XI and a makeshift Atlético Madrid XI 3-1 while drawing 1-1 with Inter.
Games between Manchester City and Arsenal tend to be close affairs, with both sides winning two of the last eight head-to-head meetings, with the other four ending in a draw. Four of the last five clashes have seen BTTS occur, while three of the last five have seen over 2.5 goals scored.
Given the players who are set to be missing, have departed either club or haven't played much in pre-season, it feels more likely that the Gunners will put out a better quality starting lineup for this one. We do, then, think they'll get over the line in an even game.
Arsenal 2-1 Manchester City
League 1 
