It took Mikel Arteta’s side just 23 seconds to get going. Myles Lewis-Skelly, fresh off a week of transfer speculation, sliced through City’s defence with an incisive pass, and Riccardo Calafiori finished calmly past Gianluigi Donnarumma to open the scoring.
Arsenal doubled their lead in the 27th minute when Odegaard found space to cross for Christos Tzolis, whose header across goal was bundled home by Kai Havertz after Donnarumma failed to hold it. Odegaard completed the rout three minutes into the second half, rounding Donnarumma with a composed finish.
Tzolis, making his competitive debut after his £34 million move from Club Brugge, finished with two assists, while £75 million signing Bruno Guimarães slotted seamlessly into Arsenal’s midfield.
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It was a starkly different story for City’s new arrivals. Elliot Anderson, handed his first showpiece appearance since his £116 million move from Nottingham Forest, struggled to make an impact, and Erling Haaland was anonymous, wasting two clear chances before the break.
The result offered a bruising introduction for Enzo Maresca, who takes charge of his first full campaign following Pep Guardiola’s departure after a decade of dominance in Manchester.
City finished seven points behind Arsenal last season and haven’t won the league since 2024, and Sunday did little to suggest the gap has closed. Maresca now has less than a week to regroup before hosting Bournemouth in City’s opening league fixture on 23 August.
For Arsenal, the timing could hardly be better. Arteta has spoken of his squad’s hunger following May’s Champions League final defeat to PSG on penalties, and this performance backed up his words.
They begin their title defence at home to newly promoted Coventry on 21 August, chasing back-to-back titles for the first time since the 1930s. Of the last 15 Community Shield winners, only City, in 2019, have gone on to win the league that same season, a stat Arsenal will hope to overturn.
– AFP
Photo: REUTERS/Chris Radburn TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
