Arsenal beat Manchester City on penalties to win Community Shield

Arsenal players celebrate after beating Manchester City on penalties to land their 17th Community Shield. (Photo credit: GOAL)

The question on everyone’s lips before the Community Shield game was "Can Arsenal stop City?", Mikel Arteta and his boys gave an emphatic answer.

Arsenal beat Manchester City on penalties after regulation time ended 1-1 to land the first silverware of the season, the FA Community Shield and the Gunners would hope that the win brings them more success in the new season and beyond.

Both sides went into the game looking for a great start to the 2023–2024 season, with the treble winners looking more than formidable despite losing two top players in the current window: Ilkay Gundogan left for free to Barcelona and Riyad Mahrez left for Saudi Arabia.

Pep Guardiola handed a competitive debut to Matteo Kovacic in midfield alongside one of the standout performers of last season, Rodrigo. Julio Alvarez and Erling Haaland both started together upfront, but Arsenal defenders gave them no joy.

Arsenal’s new signings, Declan Rice, Kai Havertz, and Jurien Timber, all got their competitive debuts from the start, with the latter filling in at left back despite the availability of Kieran Tierney. Manchester City dominated the opening exchanges, but it was Arsenal that had the best chances of the half.

Havertz missed two good chances to get Arsenal on the score sheet in the opening half: Ben White danced through on the right and set up the German, but he was thwarted by Stefan Ortega, and then again not long afterward from a fine Bukayo Saka pass.

Arsenal settled into the game, and it was City’s turn to defend. Declan Rice was formidable as a roaming number 8, pinning on Rodri for as long as possible and drawing roaring applause from the Arsenal end at Wembley Stadium.

City scored in the 77^th minute through substitute Cole Palmer; the Euro U21 champion came on from the ineffective Haaland and got on the end of an improvised Kevin De Bruyne assist to curl one past Aaron Ramsdale in the Arsenal goal.

Ramsdale saved brilliantly from Phil Foden and then Rodri at his near post. Arsenal made changes too, with Leandro Trossard, Emile Smith-Rowe, and Fabio Vieira coming in. The substitutions paid off as a Trossard effort was diverted home by Manuel Akanji to level matters deep into stoppage time.

The game went to penalties; De Bruyne missed and Ramsdale saved from Rodri, while Arsenal converted all four of their penalties to become the 2023 winner of the FA Community Shield. The win halts a run of nine straight losses to Manchester City in all competitions.