Crystal Palace and Liverpool will meet at Wembley for English football’s customary curtain-raiser on Sunday in the Community Shield.
This will be Palace’s first ever appearance in the Community Shield, as they finally won their first piece of silverware by winning the FA Cup last season, while Liverpool won the Premier League title at a canter.
Match preview
A strong record at Wembley continued for Crystal Palace when they defied the odds to beat Manchester City in the FA Cup final back in May, ending their 120-year wait for a first major honour.
That was Palace’s fourth win in six trips to Wembley in neutral ties, and even though the last four Community Shield debutants have all lost, seven of the last nine winners have come into the fixture as FA Cup holders.
There are high hopes for the season ahead, with many predicting Palace to improve on their 12th-place finish from last season.
Oliver Glasner’s men are expected to have European commitments to contend with too though, it is just unclear what competition that will be in.
If their appeal against demotion to the Conference League is successful, they will go straight into the league phase of the Europa League, but if not, it is likely Fredrikstad will be waiting in a two-legged qualifier later this month.
Palace concluded their pre-season preparation with a double-header against Augsburg away in Germany last week, where their first team won 3-1, but their reserve XI were beaten 1-0 by the Bundesliga club.
Next up is Liverpool, who have won 12 of the last 16 head-to-heads, but Palace are much more competitive in cup competitions, having only been beaten in two of the last six encounters.
While this is Palace’s first taste of the Community Shield, Liverpool are seeking to claim the trophy for the 17th time (five shared), in what will be their 25th appearance.
Liverpool lift the Premier League trophy on May 25, 2025
Liverpool may have lost the EFL Cup final here back in March, but they were runaway winners of the Premier League in Arne Slot’s first season at the helm, and a good omen for this fixture is that they have never lost at Wembley twice in the same year, but the Reds have only added one Community Shield to their trophy cabinet since 2006.
The reigning champions finished their pre-season preparations with a double-header against Athletic Bilbao on Monday night, where the first team won 3-2 after the B team had put in an impressive performance with a 4-1 victory.
Slot’s men also beat Preston North End and Yokohama F Marinos earlier in preseason, but they are yet to keep a clean sheet in any of their five friendlies.
The Premier League season will get underway at Anfield on Friday night, when the champions welcome Bournemouth, with Liverpool starting the season as favourites to retain their title.
Crystal Palace Preseason form:
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Liverpool Preseason form:
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Team News
Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk celebrates on April 27, 2025
Adam Wharton, Marc Guehi and Nathaniel Clyne have all made a return from injury during preseason for Palace, but Chadi Riad and Cheick Doucoure will miss out.
Borna Sosa and Walter Benitez have been Palace’s only two additions this summer, but it is likely both will start on the bench, with Glasner likely to prefer Tyrick Mitchell at left wing-back, and Dean Henderson in goal.
The only spot up for grabs will be in central midfield, where one of Daichi Kamada, Jefferson Lerma and Will Hughes will get the nod to partner Wharton.
All of Liverpool’s new big-money signings have played some part in preseason, and their XI here will look similar to the one that featured in the second friendly against Bilbao.
Centre-back remains a slight concern with Virgil van Dijk not at 100%, with Wataru Endo and Andy Robertson being forced to fill in alongside Ibrahima Konate on occasion during preseason.
With Alisson also a doubt, Giorgi Mamardashvili is likely to start, having had plenty of match practice during preseason, following his return from Valencia.
Crystal Palace possible starting lineup:
Henderson; Richards, Lacroix, Guehi; Munoz, Wharton, Lerma, Mitchell; Sarr, Mateta, Eze
Liverpool possible starting lineup:
Mamardashvili; Frimpong, Van Dijk, Konate, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Salah, Wirtz, Gakpo; Ekitike
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We say: Crystal Palace 1-2 Liverpool
Given the money Liverpool have spent, anything but a win in the Community Shield with a full-strength side could ring some alarm bells, but they are fancied to get the job done.
Palace have already had two sensational days out at Wembley in 2025, and they cannot be written off in causing another shock, but it will be difficult for Glasner’s men.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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