MANCHESTER UNITED VS CHELSEA 2010 COMMUNITY SHIELD PREVIEW

Carlo Ancelotti’s Chelsea side are considered favourites for this weekend’s widely-anticipated Community Shield clash at Wembley and William Hill has already released a full slate of odds for this massive fixture.

Chelsea’s odds to beat Manchester United are currently trading at a 7/5 price tag with Sir Alex Ferguson’s men listed at 2/1 with the draw priced at 11/5. It looks like the draw might actually be a pretty smart bet as the bookmaker has listed a 1-1 draw as the favoured correct score outcome. A 1-0 result to Chelsea is available at a 6/1 price while 1-0 to United is just a step behind at 13/2.
I think we could see a higher-scoring affair here and a 2-1 victory to Chelsea is well-priced at 8/1 with 2-1 to United listed at 17/2. A 2-2 draw pays out at 14/1 while a 3-2 result to Chelsea is at 28/1 and 3-2 to the Red Devils is at 33/1.
The Community Shield generally is a lower-scoring affair that doesn’t usually produce a classic. Most of the time, the sides are more interested in not picking up an injury or getting players sent off.
Unsurprisingly, Didier Drogba is the favoured anytime goalscorer with a 6/5 price. You can also back the Drog to score first or last at a 9/2 price. He’s 5/1 to grab two or more and 25/1 to get a very big hat-trick.
Nicolas Anelka and Frank Lampard are both sitting at 15/8 anytime and 13/2 first or last. Salomon Kalou has been in very good form in pre-season and you can back him at 11/4 alongside Daniel Sturridge. Newly-signed Yossi Benayoun might get a run out here and he’s listed at 7/2. Michael Essien is also back in the mix if he’s fit for this one and he’s priced at 5/1 to score anytime- wait until you see his name on the teamsheet for that one.
For Manchester United, Wayne Rooney is the favoured anytime goalscorer at 5/4 but my money is going to go on Javier Hernandez, aka Chicharito, who has really looked the business in his first two matches for United. I think he’s a great outlet for Rooney’s range of passing and his quick turn of pace and ability to play off the shoulder gives United an extra dimension. If he starts- back him at 15/8 anytime. He’s 9/1 to get two or more and I think that’s a great bet if you think United will take this one.
Dimitar Berbatov’s odds are sitting at 9/4 anytime while Nani is worth a bet at 4/1. Park Ji-Sung is sitting at 11/2 alongside Tom Cleverley, Gabriel Obertan and Ryan Giggs.