Arsenal have beaten Premier League rivals Manchester City on penalties to win the Community Shield final.
Pep Guardiola’s side looked to have won the game in normal time after Cole Palmer curled the ball past a despairing Aaron Ramsdale in the 77th minute.
The 21-year-old had been on the pitch less than 15 minutes, but soon repaid his manager’s faith. Phil Foden produced a magical turn in the middle of the park before driving at the heart of Arsenal’s defence and spraying a pass towards Palmer.
The ball was intercepted, but found its way back to Palmer who took one look before producing a sumptuous finish with his left foot.
But in the 11th minute of stoppage time, Leandro Trossard stepped up and saw his effort take a wicked deflection of Manuel Akanji and past Stefan Ortega in goal.
A straight penalty shootout ensued, with Kevin de Bruyne missing City’s opening penalty as he struck the crossbar.
Rodri then saw his spot kick saved and Fabio Vieira kept his cool to score Arsenal’s fourth penalty, to win 4-1 in the most dramatic of circumstances and lift the trophy.
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Pep Guardiola has already started the mind games with Arsenal ahead of their Community Shield clash.
The Gunners went tow-to-toe with Manchester City for the Premier League title last season, but Mikel Arteta’s side ultimately fell short, finishing five points behind the Sky Blues.
On Sunday, the pair will face off once more in the Community Shield as both teams look to gain a mental advantage over the other as they head into the 2023/24 campaign.
While the contest is widely seen as merely the curtain raiser for the upcoming season, there will be plenty at stake for the Gunners who are keen to get revenge over City and lift their first piece of silverware of the season.
However, Guardiola has already started the ‘mind games’, insisting that his side are far less prepared for the contest than Arsenal.
“We know the situation we are in right now,” the Spaniard told reporters on Friday (quotes via Football Daily). “We finish 2 weeks later than Arsenal and we start two weeks later than Arsenal so we are not in the best way.
“But hopefully our mentality will help us be there and compete like we have to compete against them and try to win the title.”
Due to Manchester City’s participation in the Champions League final, they were late to start pre-season, unlike Arsenal who were afforded 2 weeks’ extra preparation.
Although some fans may consider Guardiola’s comments as simple mind games, with the 52-year-old accused of something similar ahead of City’s title-defining clash against Arsenal last April, when he admitted he was ‘nervous’.
Speaking on Friday, Guardiola also spoke of his side’s hunger, questioning if the players had the desire to defend what they won last term.
“You cannot win more than we won – it’s impossible. But the challenge is how hungry we are and if we still have the desire to defend what we won.
“We will see during the next 11 months, particularly during the lower moments – and we will have more of them than ever – how we can overcome.”