India, Aug. 11 -- For ten years, whenever Manchester City turned up at Wembley for a domestic final, the script barely changed. Pep Guardiola would talk down the occasion beforehand, and then, more often than not, City would win it. They did it twice last season alone - beating Arsenal 2-0 in March's Carabao Cup final, Nico O'Reilly scoring both goals, and then edging past Chelsea 1-0 in the FA Cup final in May, Antoine Semenyo's backheeled flick settling that one. Both wins came under the arch, amid the smoke and noise that City's players had grown almost used to.

None of that applies to Sunday's Community Shield. Guardiola is gone, replaced by Enzo Maresca after his decade at the Etihad ended, and Wembley itself is unavailable - The We...