Manchester United won the Community Shield yesterday, capturing the traditional season opener by beating Chelsea 3-0 in a shootout, with goalkeeper Edwin Van Der Sar saving all three penalty kicks he faced.
The teams had tied 1-1 at Wembley after 90 minutes before going directly to the shootout.
Van Der Sar saved penalties from Claudio Pizarro, Frank Lampard and Shaun Wright-Phillips. Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech failed to get near any of the United shots from Rio Ferdinand, Michael Carrick and Wayne Rooney.
This is the record 16th time United has won or shared the English season opener between the league champions and FA Cup holders, which does not count in the Premier League standings. Before the introduction of shootouts in 1993, teams held the title for six months each after draws.
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The regular season will start next week.
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