Premier League champion Arsenal delivered an emphatic 3-0 victory over Manchester City at the Principality Stadium to win the FA Community Shield.
Premier League champion Arsenal kicked off the new season with an emphatic 3-0 victory over FA Cup champion Manchester City to win the FA Community Shield at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, on Sunday, August 16, 2026. The result gave Mikel Arteta an early-season triumph while condemning new City boss Enzo Maresca to a defeat in his first match in charge.
Arsenal needed just 23 seconds to open the scoring when Myles Lewis-Skelly deployed in midfield and threaded a pass to left-back Riccardo Calafiori, who calmly finished past Gianluigi Donnarumma. The early strike was the first goal scored in the opening minute of the fixture in 58 years.
Arsenal doubled their lead when Martin Odegaard floated a cross to the far post for new signing Christos Tzolis, who headed the ball back across goal for Kai Havertz to score. Just three minutes after the restart, Tzolis picked up his second assist by setting up Odegaard, whose delicate touch took the ball past Josko Gvardiol before beating Donnarumma to make it 3-0.
Manchester City managed few clear chances, with Phil Foden forcing a diving save from David Raya in the 20th minute. Last season's Golden Boot winner Erling Haaland was kept quiet by the Arsenal defense and substituted before the hour-mark after having a shot saved by Raya.
The victory marked Arsenal's fourth win over City in the fixture, maintaining their 100% win record against them in the Community Shield. Arsenal next kick off their Premier League campaign against Coventry City on Friday, with Odegaard declaring that the team also has sights on further silverware, including the Champions League following their final loss to Paris St Germain.
Reporting sourced from The Hindu Sport. Photo courtesy The Hindu Sport.