Aside from that, the traditional Wembley showpiece told us little about what lies ahead when the new season begins in earnest next Saturday.

Chelsea's victory, tinged with controversy as it was, would almost certainly have been a defeat had Manchester United been able to take their chances in a contest far more entertaining than any of the previous two these sides have toiled through at the new stadium.

And there is the rub. For United did create chances, lots of them.

It is fairly obvious that after five managers in less than two years, Chelsea's players would feel a bit dizzy at the number of tactical switches they have been asked to make.

After all, while the men at the top are welcomed into Stamford Bridge, then spat out like some kind of man-eating revolving door, the vast majority of the men on duty for the Blues at Wembley have been in place for quite some time.

The latest formation is the diamond, imported from Italy at great expense.

Except it has a significant flaw. In its homeland, it sparkles brightly. Over here it gets shunted about too much and turned over, exposing a problem that has tended to remain hidden.

In football terms, the diamond works in Italy because play tends to be more static, therefore a lack of width can be accommodated because teams tend to shuffle from one side of the pitch to another in unison, looking for a killer pass through a defence.

Such niceties do not exist in England. If a team as fluid as United score goals by passing the ball straight over the top of defences as they did today, Ancelotti can expect an even more crude variation on the same theme when he visits places like the Reebok Stadium, Fratton Park and Turf Moor over the next nine months.

The system was tweaked last week when his team found themselves two goals behind at Reading. Today it was Branislav Ivanovic's turn to depart at half-time as Chelsea tried to utilise the pace of Jose Bosingwa.

Now, it could be argued the Community Shield is just a glorified pre-season friendly, whose purpose, like all the rest, is to experiment and gain fitness. And, after all, Chelsea did win.

The problem is when issues do emerge at this late stage, it helps for it not to be part of something fundamental. Ancelotti is clearly not going to abandon a formation that served him so well in Italy and the Champions League honours on his CV is proof enough of his abilities.

But given the number of times United got a clear sight of their opponents goal, it will be a while before there is true conviction behind the belief that defensively in the Premier League, Chelsea are durable enough to reach the top.

And United are facing up to life without Cristiano Ronaldo.

There is a school of thought that Sir Alex Ferguson's side will be better without the Portuguese superstar.

Handed the central position he loves so much for England, Wayne Rooney showed at times what does for his country, he can also do for his club. His injury-time leveller the start of what he hopes will be a goals mountain.

After a horrible season last year, Nani was electric on the wing, scoring an excellent goal - even if Petr Cech should have done a much better job of keeping it out - and producing some dazzling wing play until his enforced departure just after the hour.

The surges of Park Ji-sung and more measured contributions of Darren Fletcher and Michael Carrick also caught the eye. But is it really possible to sell the world's best player and improve, or even stay the same, which might be enough to yield a fourth consecutive title?

United had enough opportunities to win at a canter so, like Chelsea with their formation, doubts will persist over their ability to score goals on a regular basis until it is proven beyond doubt that they can.

That is all for the future, answers discovered during the long, arduous campaign that lies ahead.

The minutiae will be just as intense. The season before last Patrice Evra was embroiled in a row with Chelsea's groundstaff that ended up costing him a four-match ban and £15,000.

Now he has more reason to be wound up by the Blues following his pole-axing by Michael Ballack that went unpunished in the build-up to Frank Lampard's goal and the shoot-out miss that effectively gifted Chelsea the trophy.

If one thing is for certain in this uncertain world, it will not be the last moment of controversy this campaign throws up.