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Premier League champions Manchester City cruised to a convincing 2-0 win over FA Cup holders Chelsea to lift the FA Community Shield for the first time since 2012, to mark the return of club football to England after what has been an eventful summer with the World Cup. Pep Guardiola and Maurizio Sarri, who are close friends outside of their jobs, exchanged a few smiles in the tunnel before kick-off to raise the curtains on what could become a pulsating campaign.
However, there was very little difference in City's ruthless approach that earned them the plaudits last year as the defending champions certainly looked the part to dismantle a Chelsea side that is probably still far from what Sarri would have ideally wanted it to be in the first place.
A brace from Sergio Aguero was more than enough to put the game beyond any doubt and it could have easily been a routing considering the fact that City looked at their menacing best while going forward. They were only kept at bay by a number of crucial saves from Willy Caballero.
Chelsea will now face Lyon at Stamford Bridge in the International Champions Cup before kick-starting their 2018/19 league campaign away to Huddersfield Town. On the other hand, Manchester City will lock-horns with Arsenal at the Emirates to initiate their title defence.
On that note, let's take a closer look at 3 key player battles that decided the outcome of the game:
#3 Benjamin Mendy vs Pedro
Benjamin Mendy, who returned to the Manchester City line-up after a lengthy injury lay-off followed by a successful World Cup campaign with France in Russia, looked sharp ever since the start of proceedings at Wembley. The Frenchman was deployed in his natural left full-back role by Pep Guardiola on the night and proved to be a real handful for both Pedro and Cesar Azpilicueta, the Spanish duo who guarded Chelsea’s right flank against the threat on offer.
Pedro was forced into his own half, during the majority of his involvement in the game, due to Mendy’s attacking exploits that helped City push forward in numbers. The 24-year-old was stationed almost at the half-way line during the entirety of the game, ensuring that Chelsea rarely pushed forward through the wide areas.
Furthermore, Mendy looked defensively sound and showed great composure in playing the ball out of the back to go with his excellent overlapping runs in-behind the Chelsea defenders.
#2 Jorginho vs Phil Foden
Chelsea’s flagship signing of the summer in the form of Jorginho did not enjoy a comfortable outing in his first competitive game for Chelsea at Wembley. The midfielder looked a touch too nervy in the initial stages of the game and was uncharacteristically sloppy in possession, which in turn added to his woes.
Chelsea’s midfielders struggled in general and Jorginho was handed no favours whatsoever when he was deployed alongside a declining Cesc Fabregas and Ross Barkley, who is still only getting back to his best shape. However, credit has to be given to the sublime shift put forward by 18-year-old Phil Foden who showed the experience of a seasoned veteran in finding little pockets of space inside Chelsea’s final third.
Foden complemented Bernardo Silva brilliantly in midfield for the Premier League champions and was also the driving force behind Sergio Aguero’s opening goal, that was aided by the youngster’s menacing run.
#1 Sergio Aguero vs Antonio Rudiger and David Luiz
Just like we all expected, Maurizio Sarri decided to go with Antonio Rudiger and David Luiz at the heart of the Chelsea defence and things did not go according to the script for the Italian in his first competitive game in charge of the West London outfit.
The understanding between the two centre-halves was almost non-existent for the majority of the game and the ill-effects of the partnership became blatantly evident when Chelsea conceded both their goals.
Sergio Aguero punished the duo for their careless approach with two well-taken goals on either side of half-time to put the game beyond any doubt. In the build-up to the first goal, Rudiger was comprehensively wrong-footed. It allowed Aguero to dispatch a neat finish into the far corner. For the second goal, Luiz switched off for a few good seconds to allow the Argentine to make a decisive run in behind him to bag a deserving brace.
Perhaps the biggest evidence of Luiz and Rudiger not being on the same wavelength came to light in the second half when Aguero was allowed a clear route on goal, which he luckily squandered, due to the confusion that emerged out of trying to play a high-line against the attacking onslaught from City.
