What to Watch for on Sunday’s Community Shield Final
The FA Community Shield will be played on Sunday at 10:00 a.m. EST at Wembley Stadium in London. Defending Premier League Champions Liverpool will face off against FA Cup winners Crystal Palace. In last year’s final, Manchester City defeated their neighbor, Manchester United, in a penalty shootout. Here are three things to watch for on Sunday.
Florian Wirtz
Liverpool signed Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen for the most expensive transfer fee in English history. The young German played coy about the large fee, but there is certainly pressure for Wirtz to succeed wearing red. He played a couple of preseason matches, and Sunday will likely be his professional debut for Liverpool. He’s looked capable over the preseason, but the stakes are turned up a notch as he’ll face a hungry Palace side at the iconic Wembley Stadium with silverware on the line.
Dominik Szoboszlai’s Role
Dominik Szoboszlai is one of the most affected players by the Wirtz signing, as it is fair to assume Wirtz will directly take up Szoboszlai’s spot in the starting 11. With Alexis Mac Allister unlikely to start, Szoboszlai could take up a new role playing deeper along with Ryan Gravenberch. Szoboszlai is great at carrying the ball forward and should be very useful in the attack. However, he hasn’t proven himself defensively because he hasn’t had to, which could put more pressure on Gravenberch. On the flip side, if he shows defensive capability, he could have multiple uses in Arne Slot’s system and see more time on the pitch even with Wirtz.
Hugo Ekitike
French striker Hugo Ekitike is under a lot of pressure to step up, considering Darwin Núñez is expected to depart, leaving Liverpool thin at striker. Ekitike skirted Newcastle and, like Wirtz, is expected to make his professional debut for Liverpool on Sunday. Similar to Wirtz, the young Ekitike must navigate the pressures that come with a large transfer fee. For Frankfurt, Ekitike was masterful at creating shot opportunities for himself and his teammates. He shot the ball plenty, but underperformed his xG significantly, signs of poor finishing. The good news is that for now, Liverpool already has good finishers, taking pressure off their striker. He’s expected to be a complementary piece, not the star of an already loaded Liverpool side. Sunday’s match should be a good indicator of how he’s managed to gel into his new team and role.
