London: Chelsea and Manchester United renew acquaintance in Sunday's Community Shield season opener with one team worried about its form and another concerned by injuries.
Premier League and FA Cup champion Chelsea meets league runner-up United having lost three straight friendlies and still trying to complete its activity in the transfer market.
On the other side, United is without midfielder Michael Carrick because of an ankle injury and striker Michael Owen is worried about the effect the Wembley turf will have on his hamstrings.
Owen is finally fit after rupturing a hamstring at Wembley in February and is wondering whether a re-laid surface containing synthetic fibers will lessen the impact the often uneven field has on players.
Owen's injury after scoring in the League Cup final was one of several blamed on the Wembley turf last season. It was widely criticized and John Terry said it ruined the FA Cup final, which Chelsea won 1-0 against Portsmouth.
"Hopefully, it makes it a lot better because I wasn't the only injury to come out of that game and we don't want the same to happen again," Owen said. "There were quite a lot of other injured players and that is the worrying bit.
"If it was just me, then you could say it was a freak accident. But the pitch must have had something to do with it because there were loads of injuries."
Owen's return and the signing of Mexico striker Javier Hernandez should provide a big boost to a United side that won the League Cup but missed out on a record fourth straight Premier League title when it finished a single point behind the Blues.
Hernandez, who is also known by his nickname of Chicharito, joined United for 7 million pounds ($11.1 million) in April. He scored twice at the World Cup and has impressed in preseason, scoring three times for his new club and once for his old team Chivas, against United.
Hernandez, Owen and Wayne Rooney are all in contention for a place in attack against Chelsea, which won both league meetings between the clubs last season for an edge that proved crucial in the outcome of the title.
Chelsea also beat United in a shootout to win last season's Community Shield.
The winner of the Community Shield has gone on to win the league title in the past three seasons, although prior to that it has been an unreliable indicator of the year to come.
Liverpool won it twice in the past decade but the closest it has come to winning a first title since 1990 was when it finished runner-up in 2009.
Chelsea scored seven goals twice before wrapping up the Premier League title with an 8-0 win over Wigan but, with the league season starting on August 14, is in less than impressive form. It has lost to Ajax, Eintracht Frankfurt and Hamburg since beating second-tier English side Crystal Palace last month.
Most recently, it was beaten 2-1 at Hamburg on Wednesday.
"We've had a lot of hard training sessions over the last few days," striker Nicolas Anelka said. "It's a shame because we conceded two rubbish goals but what can I say?
"I think we are improving in our play — we played well in some parts — and I hope we will be okay for Manchester United on Sunday."
Chelsea's lineup will be a familiar one, with Yossi Benayoun replacing Joe Cole in the only notable transfer of the off-season. Chelsea is trying to sign Brazil midfielder Ramires but has not completed the deal.
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