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The 2018/2019 football league season in England is officially upon us, with the traditional curtain raiser; the Community Shield, taking place on Sunday.
The fixture historically features a clash between the winners of the league and FA Cup from the previous season, with the match taking place at the 'home of football' Wembley, and all proceeds going to charity.
This season's fixture will see last year's runaway league winners Manchester City trade tackles with Chelsea, and both managers take charge of their first Community Shield fixture. In the case of Sarri, this will be his first official match in English competition owing to his summer appointment as Chelsea gaffer.
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The marquee nature and recent pedigree of the two clubs along with the high reputations of both managers should make for an exciting watch, as both teams seek to lay down an early marker of their intentions for the coming season.
As with most premium fixtures, all eyes would be on some select players to deliver a performance befitting the occasion, and the result of the match could be influenced by some key players.
However, with both clubs set to feature under-strength teams owing to extended breaks for World Cup participants who got to the latter stages, here are seven important battles that could decide the outcome of the match.
Probable Starting Lineups:
Chelsea (4-3-3): Caballero, Azpilicueta, Luiz, Rudiger, Alonso, Jorginho, Fabregas, Barkley, Pedro, Morata, Hudson-Odoi
Manchester City (4-2-3-1) Ederson, Walker, Kompany, Otamendi, Mendy, Silva, Fernandinho, Foden, Mahrez, Aguero, Sane
#7 Leroy Sane vs Cesar Azpilicuetta
Leroy Sane was one of the most consistent performers in Manchester City's romp to the title, making 32 appearances in the Premier League last season.
The 22-year-old contributed 25 goals (10 goals and 15 assists) to the City cause and was deservedly named PFA Young Player of the Year, but controversially dropped from Joachim Low's ultimately underperforming squad at the just concluded World Cup.
He will no doubt seek to continue from where he left off last season and would aim to continue being one of the pillars of the City team, as his explosive runs and change of pace down the flanks are essential components of the Man City attacking arsenal.
Being fresher than most of his colleagues due to his prolonged holidays as a result of his missing the World Cup, Sane would like to use this match as an opportunity to remind everybody of his immense qualities but will come up against a formidable direct rival in Cesar Azpilicueta.
The 28-year-old Spanish international is a seasoned professional, and one of the most reliable footballers anywhere in the world, as he discharges his duties with minimum fuss and utmost concentration on the job at hand.
He has been reverted to his natural position of right-back, as his new manager prefers a conventional back four in a 4-3-3 system, having spent the last two seasons as a centre-back in a back three of Conte's title-winning 3-4-3 formation.
Both players are key components of their respective teams, with Azpilicueta in defence for The Blues and Sane in attack for the Cityzens, and whoever gets the better of the other could be a deciding factor in which team prevails and lifts the first trophy of the season.
#6 Sergio Aguero vs David Luiz
City's all-time record goalscorer against a David Luiz seeking redemption at Chelsea, the 31-year-old Brazilian international fell out of favour with Antonio Conte last season and found himself frozen out of the first team by the Italian manager. However, Sarri seems to have given him a clean slate, and it is one which the moppy-haired centre-back would do well to utilize.
Sergio Aguero represents the chief goal threat for Manchester City and has been the club's leading goalscorer every season since his arrival from Atletico Madrid in 2011.
He is coming off the back of a very disappointing World Cup campaign with La Albiceleste of Argentina and would be in a determined mood to get that behind him as soon as possible in the only way he knows how; by scoring goals.
Aguero is one of the most lethal centre-forwards in Europe, and if Chelsea are to have a good chance of victory against Manchester City, his impact would have to be nullified, with David Luiz having a huge role to play in nullifying that threat.
#5 Riyad Mahrez vs Marcos Alonso
The Algerian international Mahrez is City's record signing following his £60m transfer from Leicester City last month.
The 2016 PFA Player of the Season has impressed in pre-season fixtures so far, and picked up a minor hamstring injury against Bayern Munich, but Pep has given him the green light to feature on Sunday, which will come as good news to the ears of the 27-year-old Algerian international as he seeks to cement his first-team status, and stave off competition from the likes of Raheem Sterling, Bernardo Silva and Leroy Sane for starting shirts in the wide berths by producing exceptional performances whenever the opportunity arises.
He comes up against 27-year-old Spanish left-back Marcos Alonso, who was a key member of Conte's title-winning campaign, and his attacking forays down Chelsea's left flank means that Riyad Mahrez would have to provide defensive cover for Kyle Walker to nullify the threat posed by Alonso.
However, Alonso is not too defensively sound, and his channel would constantly be targeted by the City attack, with Riyad Mahrez taking every opportunity to cut inside onto his stronger and Alonso's weaker foot for a chance to shoot at goal.
#4 Alvaro Morata vs Nicolas Otamendi
Chelsea's record signing had a nightmare debut season to forget, with his poor run of form in Chelsea's colours last season costing him his place in the Spanish national team and a World Cup spot.
Alvaro Morata would be desperate to exorcise the ghosts of last season, and this fixture represents a good chance to boost his morale by getting a goal or two against the best team in the league.
The chief marshall charged with stopping him would be 30-year-old Nicolas Otamendi who was the most important defender in Man City's title procession last season.
The Argentine international led the way for the most number of passes in the league last season and ended the season in the PFA Team of the Year. However, he failed to carry over his club form onto the international scene and was the major culprit in an Argentine backline which conceded a disappointing 9 goals in just 4 matches.
Both players are crucial to their team's game-plan tomorrow, with Morata as the main goal threat, while Otamendi will attempt to shut out Chelsea's attacks, and whoever discharges his duties more effectively would probably end up on the winning team.
#3 Pedro vs Benjamin Mendy
If Chelsea are to adopt a counter-attacking pattern and attempt to catch Manchester City on the break, then in the likely absence of Eden Hazard and Willian, Pedro Rodriguez would have a hugely important role to play in Chelsea's attack.
The 31-year-old Spanish international is a quick player, and Sarri would utilize his pace on the wings to exploit Manchester City's high defensive line. Pedro would, however, find a stumbling block in World Cup winner Benjamin Mendy.
The 24-year-old former Monaco player went all the way in the World Cup, and despite players in similar circumstances to him still on an extended break due to their extra exertions, Mendy has returned early to play his way back into the City set-up having had his debut season cut short by a cruciate knee ligament injury sustained in September of last year, which also cost him his starting spot at the World Cup.
Benjamin Mendy is a truly modern full-back, combining defensive duties with efficient attacks, with his pin-point crossing abilities one of the key components in Manchester City's early dominance last season, before his unfortunate injury.
Indeed, proof of his effectiveness can be seen in that France coach Didier Deschamps included him in his 23-man squad for the World Cup despite having barely one month of recovery, and lacking match fitness when the list was released.
Pedro is one of the Chelsea players who will be keen to impress Sarri, as competition for places on Chelsea's wings are stiff, but in Mendy, he will come up against a more than formidable opponent.
#2 Jorginho and Fabregas vs Fernandinho and David Silva
Chelsea new signing Jorginho was a protege of Sarri's at Napoli and was the first signing announced by the 59-year-old manager.
The Italian international is well versed with his coach's methods, and in Chelsea's pre-season matches so far has proven to be the on-field progenitor of Sarri's tactics, constantly pointing to his teammates where he wants the ball to be played, and demanding the ball to initiate attacks despite his limited grasp of the English language.
Jorginho possesses all the requisite characteristics for a midfielder in a possession-based system, with his short range and long range passing abilities making him a shoe-in for the 'philosophy' and was indeed a long-term target of Guardiola's at Manchester City, until he ultimately decided to join Chelsea instead.
In Fabregas, he has a partner bred in the 'tiki-taka' system, with the Spaniard being a product of the famed Barcelona La Masia and the 31-year-old former Arsenal captain was coached by Guardiola for one season at Barcelona. His similar skill set to Jorginho would make him a very important part of Sarri's plans, having played limited roles at Chelsea in recent seasons.
They would come up against a City midfield which was by far the best in England and by some extension Europe last season, as David Silva and the absent Kevin De Bruyne ran roughshod over opposition midfielders, dictating the tempo of games from midfield at will with Fernandinho behind them to break up any attack opposing teams managed to create.
The systems employed by both managers means that the midfield is central to everything they create, and whichever set of midfielders overcomes in their battle, would undoubtedly see their team win the Community Shield.
#1 Pep Guardiola vs Maurizio Sarri
Probably the most important battle in determining the outcome of the match, as the men on the touchline for both teams have a huge say in deciding the winner.
A clash of similar styles and playing patterns, this would be the third meeting between both men, after their two-legged group stage Champions League clash last season where Manchester City prevailed over Sarri's Napoli.
The Pertenopei caused Guardiola's men a lot of problems over both legs, as their possession-based style of football was extremely similar to that employed by the Cityzens, and even in defeat over the two ties, Maurizio Sarri earned the praise of his adversary, with Guardiola stating that Napoli was the team he was most impressed with in Europe.
Sarri employs a possession and exploitation of space pattern of play, and his Napoli side earned widespread acclaim for their aesthetic style of play, with the late Johan Cruyff also praising Sarri's work.
In a clash of similar styles and patterns, there might be too little in terms of tactics to separate both teams, and it ultimately boils down to little factors such as which coach can outwit and outthink the other or which set of players will translate their manager's instructions better on the field that could decide the outcome of the match.
