Arsenal face Chelsea on Sunday in the traditional curtain raiser for the new season, the Community Shield.
In preparation for the match, we thought we’d put together a list of the five things to look out for at Wembley this weekend.
New signings
This is the big one that normally generates excitement as the season gets underway and this game is no different.
Alexandre Lacazette has already got himself a couple of goals, and Sead Kolašinac looked unstoppable on the left last weekend, so there’s plenty for Arsenal fans to be excited about.
Meanwhile Chelsea’s Alvaro Morata has so far managed a total of zero goals in Chelsea’s pre-season matches, so he’ll be looking to get off the mark, and Tiemoue Bakayoko is unavailable.
Rudiger is also in contention for a start in central defence.
Alexis Sanchez
There are a number of reasons that Alexis is likely to steal the spotlight this weekend.
Firstly, his future is still officially unresolved, although Arsène has been saying all summer that he plans to keep him.
Secondly, with only a few days of training under his belt, it’ll be interesting to see how involved he is in the match.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Y3yikO4YNc
Thirdly, it’s Wembley.
Alexis has a fantastic record at Wembley, and seems to make it even better with every appearance.
He already had five goals and an assist in 4 games before last season’s appearances, and he added to that with goals against City and Chelsea.
Mesut Özil
Often accused of taking the day off against Chelsea, Mesut turned things round last season, with a masterclass in the 3-0 win at the Emirates, and another strong performance in the FA Cup final.
He’s had the benefit of a full pre-season, just as he did in 2015/16, so Arsenal fans are excited to see what he can produce this year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_ugWoP4Jpk
Youth involvement
The Gunners’ youth star of pre-season, Reiss Nelson has stepped up to every challenge so far, and based on the members’ day showing, he’s growing more confident every day.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiPD8EHetOE
It’s unlikely he’ll be involved from the start, but he’ll be one to look out for on the bench. Ainsley Maitland-Niles is the other player on the fringes at the moment.
On the other side, Jeremie Boga has already played against Arsenal once this pre-season, and with Hazard still out and Pedro just returning it’s possible he might again.
N’Golo Kanté
One of the stars in Leicester’s title winning campaign, followed by Chelsea’s title winning campaign, the only team that Kanté always seems to struggle against is Arsenal.
He’ll need to turn this round if he wants to help Chelsea to victory on this occasion.
So that’s what we think you should look out for this Sunday.
Is there anything we’ve missed? Let us know.