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Manchester City and Liverpool have established themselves as two of the top-dogs in the Premier League after their exploits last season. While the Cityzens are coming on the back of a historic domestic treble, the Merseyside giants won club football's most coveted prize for the sixth-time in their history.
The FA Community Shield, the annual curtain-raiser, is a one-off fixture that is contested by reigning Premier League champions and the winners of the FA Cup.
Since Manchester City completed a clean sweep of domestic trophies in the English top-flight last season, Liverpool entered the competition by virtue of their second-placed finish in the Premier League.
The intense competition between the two sides in recent times has seen this fixture develop into a modern day rivalry that could continue for years to come.
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Speaking before the game, both managers talked up the significance of the competition and signalled their intentions to start the season on a high.
The FA Community Shield, albeit a glorified friendly, is still a shot at winning silverware and a brilliant opportunity for the two teams to establish their superiority so early on in the season.
Jurgen Klopp's Kings of the Kop are Manchester City's Achilles heel and as the two teams prepare to go head-to-head, English football springs to life once again, with the Premier League season set to kick-off less than a week from now.
Key Match Facts
Manchester City have only won two of their last 13 games against Liverpool.
Liverpool have won the Community Shield 15 times, as opposed to Manchester City's five.
Manchester City are looking to retain the trophy for the first time in their history.
Jurgen Klopp has beaten Pep Guardiola more times (7) than any manager in history.
An average of 3.4 goals per game have been scored in six of the last seven meetings between the sides.
The last five meetings between the sides have yielded 16 goals, with one draw and the Reds winning on three occasions.
Team News
Both teams have welcomed key players back recently after they were granted extended holidays owing to their international commitments.
Sadio Mane is still absent for Liverpool, with the Senegalese front-man scheduled to report back on Monday after missing out on AFCON glory to Riyad Mahrez's Algeria, who's already back amongst the squad for Manchester City.
Klopp has a fully-fit squad available to him but in stark contrast, Guardiola confirmed the absence of a handful of key players.
Ederson Moraes, Benjamin Mendy and Fernandinho have been ruled out and the likes of Aymeric Laporte, Gabriel Jesus and Riyad Mahrez could start from the bench, owing to the lack of match practice in pre-season.
Leroy Sane's move to Bayern Munich is reportedly set to be confirmed imminently, casting doubts over his involvement in the game.
Predicted XI
Manchester City Predicted XI - Claudio Bravo, Kyle Walker, Nicolas Otamendi, John Stones, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Rodri, David Silva, Kevin de Bruyne, Leroy Sane, Raheem Sterling, Bernardo Silva
Liverpool Predicted XI - Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip, Andy Robertson, Fabinho, Jordan Henderson, Georginio Wijnaldum, Divock Origi, Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah
