Liverpool will take on either Arsenal or Chelsea in the Community Shield in exactly one month’s time, with the clash now confirmed to be taking place on August 29.
The Reds have qualified for their first final of 2020/21 having won the Premier League, and will be looking to win the clash this time around having lost last season’s to Man City.
Due to the delayed end to the previous campaign, the Community Shield is now being held in August, which will be two weeks before the start of the league calendar.
Liverpool will find out their opponents on Saturday evening, as Arsenal face Chelsea in the FA Cup final, with their meeting then set for August 29.
That means that Jurgen Klopp and his squad have exactly one month to prepare for their next ‘competitive’ fixture—though, of course, the Community Shield is widely considered a glorified friendly.
The Reds are currently on a two-week break following the conclusion of their title-winning campaign, but the short gap between the end of 2019/20 and the start 2020/21 likely means they can pick up where they left off on their return.
Pre-season will reconvene at Melwood, not Kirkby as initially planned, as Liverpool will be without both Adam Lallana and Dejan Lovren, with the pair already having left the club.
It is unclear whether there will have been any further additions by August 29, but there are question marks over the futures of Xherdan Shaqiri and Divock Origi.
The Community Shield should see Klopp field a strong side, but with the likelihood of youngsters such as Neco Williams, Curtis Jones, Harvey Elliott and perhaps even Rhian Brewster, Ki-Jana Hoever and Sepp van den Berg being involved.
Wembley will remain the venue for the final, with it rumoured to be being considered as a ‘test event’ for the return of fans to stadia from October.
The clash will then be followed by an international break from September 2 to 10, with the Premier League then kicking off on September 12.
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