Theo Walcott catches the eye of David John in the anytime goalscorer betting for Sunday's Community Shield between Arsenal and Chelsea.
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Arsenal v Chelsea (Sunday 1400BST, BT Sport1)
It has already been a pretty long slog over the summer for these two having fulfilled obligations to put on a performance for their more far-flung fan bases as they meet for a third time since the FA Cup final at the end of May.
Chelsea were hot favourites on that occasion to sweep aside the Gunners on the back of claiming the Premier League title but Aaron Ramsey’s late surge into the box to head home ensured a third triumph in four seasons and a lifeline for under-fire Arsene Wenger.
The curtain goes up again on another campaign for the Frenchman and the decision was probably the correct one to keep him at the helm - I am sure there will still be a few dissenting voices among the fans but nothing a solid start won’t appease.
I mentioned this will be a third meeting over the summer - Chelsea managed to exact a modicum of revenge with a comfortable 3-0 triumph in Beijing’s Bird's Nest Stadium just a fortnight ago with Arsenal looking rather leggy having already played a handful of games in Australia and China.
Chelsea took full advantage as they blitzed their opponents either side of half-time with an increasingly confident-looking Michy Batshuayi registering an impressive double.
The Belgian is set for a much bigger role after netting the title winner at West Brom in May bearing in mind Antonio Conte’s patience seems to have run out when it comes to the moody Diego Costa with the Spaniard told he is not part of the team's plans.
The arrival of £70m Alvaro Morata from Real Madrid makes him the main man over the longer term but he very much needs to prove his sharpness for this early test and Batshuayi is a much more tempting prospect here in any goalscorer market.
That said, it has been a rather underwhelming off-season for Chelsea overall bar steam-rolling Arsenal having suffered defeats to Bayern Munich (poor since in the Audi Cup) and Inter Milan.
Conte has seen just four new players arrive at Stamford Bridge so far - admittedly spending a small fortune on them - with Tiemoue Bakayoko still on the easy list after a minor knee operation while Eden Hazard is still rehabbing after surgery on his ankle.
Pedro has given Conte a boost as he could be ready to go on Sunday wearing a protective face mask having been clobbered by an on-rushing David Ospina in China but another summer arrival Antonio Rudiger will not play anywhere near 90 minutes having only just gone back to training following the Confederations Cup.
Arsenal bounced back nicely from the Chelsea mauling to lift the Emirates Cup on their own patch last weekend, thrashing Benfica 5-2 then losing 2-1 to Sevilla courtesy of a Steven N’Zonzi wonder goal 24 hours later but doing enough on goal difference to prevail.
New wing-back Sead Kolasinac really caught the eye with some muscular bursts down the flank as Wenger used the weekend to give the majority of his first-team squad a run out with them seemingly over the previous exertions of those Far East exploits.
Alexis Sanchez has shaken off a bout of flu too and pushed himself hard in training this week as he attempts to make the starting line-up while Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey are both healthy enough to give Wenger the opportunity to select a strong line-up.
We get a chance to run the rule over Alexandre Lacazette as well so I much prefer the Gunners at the prices to get the job done in 90 minutes - it is straight to penalties with no extra-time - and the bet I am drawn to most is Theo Walcott to score in the anytime market.
The Englishman is sporting a fresh haircut for the new campaign and was razor-sharp in the victory over Benfica as he helped himself to two goals and should have completed the hat-trick only to blast over from a good position in typical Walcott fashion.
I can forgive him that blip judged on his overall contribution and 3/1 is generous for him to nip in and help himself once more.
Verdict: Arsenal 3-1 Chelsea
Opta facts:
• The last time these two sides were in the Community Shield was in 2015 – Arsenal winning 1-0 thanks to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s strike.
• Overall, this will be the third time these sides have met in the curtain raiser - with Chelsea winning 2-1 in Cardiff in 2005.
• The last three Community Shield matches have been won by the previous season’s FA Cup winners, with Arsenal winning in 2014 and 2015, and Manchester United last year.
• Not including occasions when the trophy was shared, Arsenal have won the Community Shield 13 times – second only to Manchester United with 18.
• The Blues have lost their last three Community Shield matches, last triumphing on penalties in 2009 against Manchester United.
• This will be the fourth meeting between these sides at the new Wembley – no fixture has been played there more (same as Chelsea v Man Utd and Chelsea v Tottenham). Arsenal have won two of the three previous meetings.
• Chelsea have alternated between victory and defeat in their last six matches at Wembley, losing last time out to Arsenal in the 2016/17 FA Cup final.
• Meanwhile, Arsenal have won their last seven games at Wembley – the longest ever winning club run at the ground.
• Indeed, the last time Arsenal failed to win at Wembley was the 2013/14 FA Cup semi-final vs Wigan (1-1), while the last side to beat them there was Birmingham in the 2010/11 League Cup final.
• This will be Arsene Wenger’s 20th game in charge of Arsenal at Wembley Stadium (W12 D2 L5). Away from Highbury or the Emirates, he’s won more games at this ground than any other in his 21 years at Arsenal.
Posted 1315 BST on 04/08/2017
