How Arsenal Beats Manchester City to Community Shied Title

August 17, 2026 | 04:31 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Arsenal opened the 2026/2027 season with a victory over Manchester City and a trophy. The Gunners defeated Manchester City 3-0 in the Community Shield at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on Sunday evening, August 16, 2026.

Riccardo Calafiori, Kai Havertz, and Martin Odegaard scored Arsenal's goals. Calafiori opened the scoring after just 23 seconds, before Havertz doubled the score in the 28th minute. Odegaard then completed the scoring three minutes into the second half.

The victory was more than just a season-opening trophy for Mikel Arteta. The Arsenal manager wants the performance against Manchester City to serve as a benchmark for his team as they enter the season-long competition. "We talked about the desire that we have to start the season and to show ourselves how much we want it," Arteta said after the match, as quoted by ESPN.

Arteta admitted he saw many positives from his players when facing top-tier opponents. "It is down to the preparation that we did in preseason, the decisions that the boys have taken after the World Cup, to continue to get prepared, to come early and be part of this."

Arteta believed his  players "really wanted to win" after given the opportunity to face City thanks to their success the previous season.

"Very impressed in the manner we played, especially in the manner that we competed. That is the standard for us. If we drive the standards at this level, I am sure we are going to be really competitive," added the Spanish coach.

Early Goal and Arsenal Pressure

Arsenal immediately took control of the match. Calafiori scored after receiving a pass from Myles Lewis-Skelly. The goal was the fastest in a Community Shield match since 1968.

Manchester City tried to respond through Elliot Anderson and Phil Foden. However, their efforts were unable to change the game. Erling Haaland also struggled to find space up front, while David Raya put in a composed performance to keep Arsenal's goal at bay.

Arsenal then extended their lead in the 28th minute through Havertz. After taking a two-goal lead, Arteta's team maintained their lead until halftime.

At the start of the second half, Arsenal scored again. Christos Tzolis provided a pass to Odegaard, who then fired home to make it 3-0. Tzolis was one of the standout players on his debut, having been involved in all three of Arsenal's goals and providing two assists.

Manchester City tried to reduce the deficit after that. Jack Grealish and Rayan Cherki created chances, but Raya kept Arsenal clean.

There were no further goals until the end of the match. Arsenal lifted the Community Shield trophy and started the season with a victory over one of their main rivals in the Premier League.

For Manchester City, the match was Enzo Maresca's first official match as a manager. The former Chelsea manager replaced Pep Guardiola and had to start his new era with a 0-3 defeat.

Maresca Talks Defeat

Maresca believes Arsenal's early goal was a crucial factor in the match. "Unfortunately after 30 seconds we conceded the first one. I think the reaction was good, before they scored the second goal we had three or four chances to score and to draw the game. Unfortunately we missed the chances," he said, as quoted on Manchester City's official website.

Maresca said Manchester City still has a lot of work to do. He asked his team to immediately evaluate the match and prepare for the next one. "It’s just the beginning, we have many things that we need to do better, I think the reaction was good after conceding the first goal and now try to reset and analyse the game and think from Tuesday about the next game," Maresca said.

The Italian coach also explained the decision to start Haaland, Nico O'Reilly, Jeremy Doku, and Elliot Anderson. The four players had just returned to first-team training after missing the pre-season tour to Asia due to their involvement in the World Cup. "We decide to start with four with just two or three sessions,” he said. The reason why was also because sometimes players prefer to start doing the proper warm up and start from the beginning," said Maresca.

The victory over Manchester City provided Arsenal with a good start before the start of the Premier League campaign. The Gunners will face Coventry City in their first match at Emirates Stadium.

Arteta doesn't want the Community Shield victory to be a mere achievement. Instead, he views this performance as a standard Arsenal must maintain when the official season begins.

Read: Arsenal Defeat Como on Penalties to End Pre-Season With a Win

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