Antonio Conte has admitted that his Chelsea side are ‘tired’ ahead of their Community Shield clash with Arsenal.
Arsenal and Chelsea run into each other for the second time this pre-season on 6 August in the Community Shield at Wembley.
Despite the Gunners losing their first friendly against Conte’s side 3-0, they’ve been handed a boost after the manager admitted that the Blues are a little tired following the rest of their pre-season clashes.
“Now it is difficult to tell how far off we are,” he said.
“My players are very tired because they played three games in only eight days.
“With this temperature and humidity, players are always the same and they will be tired.
“It is important to rest and to come back to London and restart work.
“It is not a friendly game. It is an official game and there is a trophy so for us it must be important.
“Every fixture has its own history and now we have to play another game.
“We lost the final of the FA Cup and it was a pity as we were in a position to win. But Arsenal won.
“Now this is another story, we must be able to fight and be able to win.”
Chelsea have only faced Bayern Munich and Inter Milan since playing Arsenal on 22 July. The Gunners, on the other hand, faced Sydney FC, Western Sydney Wanderers, and Bayern before meeting the Blues in Bejing, and have since played Benfica and Sevilla in the Emirates Cup.
Therefore, if any squad has a right to feel ‘tired’ at this stage, it’s Arsenal.
The side that Arsene Wenger will field against Chelsea will most likely be far closer to Arsenal’s starting XI for the Premier League next season compared to last time, when their defence was young and inexperienced.
While the Community Shield is technically a pre-season friendly, it’s still a match between two London rivals. Chelsea won the title last season and while Arsenal won the FA Cup they finished fifth in the league.
This match could be an indicator of where the starting line-ups need work ahead of the season and whether new signings need to be made.
In Arsenal’s case, most Gooners probably have an idea of how their team will stack up against the current title-holders, but we’ll just have to wait and see.