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Arsenal beat Manchester City 1-1 (4-1) in a penalty shoot-out to win the FA Community Shield at Wembley Stadium on Sunday, August 6. Mikel Arteta’s side thus began their campaign for the 2023-24 season well.
On the other hand, the underwhelming run of Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, who have won 14 trophies during the last seven years, continued at the Community Shield. City have won only two Community Shields under Guardiola, meanwhile losing out on three occasions.
Cole Palmer put Manchester City ahead with a wonderful strike in the 77th minute, but Leandro Trossard equalized for the Gunners moments before the final whistle. The match then went into the penalties that saw Aaron Ramsdale come up with a good performance for Arsenal.
On that note, let us take a look at two things that stood out in the match.
#1 Manchester City dominated possession for the most part
Manchester City started the match with a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Mateo Kovacic and Rodri playing as the two defensive midfielders. Kevin de Bruyne did not start, as Julian Alvarez began as the No. 10 and Erling Haaland as the No. 9.
The Gunners, meanwhile, started with Kai Havertz as the frontman and new signing Jurrien Timber as the left-back. New signing Declan Rice also started in midfield for the Gunners.
Still, it was Manchester City who dominated ball possession from the very beginning. They kept playing short passes among themselves to frustrate the Gunners. Kovacic played with a lot of authority and Bernardo Silva and Jack Grealish attacked at times through the flanks.
Arsenal’s defense, meanwhile, held firm with both Gabriel and William Saliba holding firm and Thomas Partey and Declan Rice lending solidity.
#2 Substitutions altered the course of the match in the second half of Arsenal vs Manchester City
The match changed in the second half, with the substitutes playing a key role. City introduced De Bruyne, Palmer, and Phil Foden in the second half and took off an ineffective Erling Haaland, Grealish, and Kovacic. De Bruyne’s presence in the opposition half had an impact, as City began to threaten Arsenal’s defense more often.
A quick counter-attack from City led to the opening goal. Foden made a quick turn with the ball on his feet and ran into the Arsenal half before playing it to Palmer, who curled it in with his left foot from the edge of the penalty box.
Arteta responded by sending in Trossard, Fabio Vieira, Kieran Tierney, and Emile Smith-Rowe, as their shape changed to a 4-4-2 with Bukayo Saka and Smith-Rowe upfront. Vieira made his presence felt through the right flank with his high work rate, but Arsenal still struggled to see much of the ball.
The Gunners went gung-ho, playing with a high line and sending in long balls into the opposition's half. Trossard’s shot from one of those attacks took a deflection off Manuel Akanji before going in. It was an unexpected blow to City’s plans, as the Gunners went on to win the ensuing penalty shoot-out.
