THE NOTEBOOK: Erling Haaland’s Community Shield curse continues as Mikel Arteta’s tactical switches keep his stars on their toes
- Arsenal beat Man City 4-1 on penalties after a 1-1 stalemate in regulation time
- Mikel Arteta likes to keep his players on their toes with tactical switches
- Meanwhile, Erling Haaland’s Community Shield hoodoo dragged on
Arsenal won their first silverware in three years with a penalty shootout victory over Manchester City in the FA Community Shield final.
Cole Palmer had given City a late lead with a marvelous strike before Leandro Trossard scored in the 11th minute of added time, setting up the shootout which the Gunners won 4-1.
From the jaws of defeat, Mikel Arteta had snatched a sweet victory over his former mentor, Pep Guardiola, and showed the Premier League what his side were up to as they pulled the curtain back on the season in days. Try telling them it was just a friendly game.
We got a glimpse of the campaign’s punitive crackdown to come, with referees ready to crack down on wasting time and dissent. Several players were in Stuart Attwell’s book under these new measures and even Arteta was shown a yellow for dissent.
Here are some of the aspects of the finale that you may have missed.
Arsenal lifted the Community Shield trophy after beating Manchester City on penalties
Mikel Arteta has one on former mentor Pep Guardiola – revenge for the Premier League
The Jeff Astle Foundation has been a worthy beneficiary of the charitable funds generated.
The former England striker died of early dementia in 2002 aged 59.
After the fight, his widow, Laraine, and daughter, Dawn, went through football to solve this big problem, it was appropriate.
Leandro Trossard’s goal was the first scored by a current Arsenal player at Wembley.
The Gunners’ previous five goals on the ground had all been scored by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Leandro Trossard scored an equalizer in the 101st minute to send the game to penalties
Mikel Arteta’s chess game keeps its stars on their toes forever.
After starting Eddie Nketiah last week against Monaco with the captain’s armband for the first time, he probably seemed like a shoo-in for this game.
But no, the Arsenal manager opted for Kai Havertz as a false nine – a position he sometimes played at Chelsea. No player’s place is safe under the Spaniard.
How refreshing that the FA actually listened to the supporters.
Kick-off was originally scheduled for 5:30 p.m., but following concerns raised by fans about possible public transport issues, it was brought forward to 4 p.m.
A good decision and hopefully a continued trend to consider public feedback.
Referee Stuart Attwell gave Arteta a yellow card for dissent as a sign of the coming crackdown
The PGMOL officiating body has warned clubs ahead of the season of a crackdown on managers’ touchline antics.
Here, Arteta was shown a yellow card for making an angry gesture at referee Stuart Attwell when Rodri brought Havertz down on a counterattack.
A rather timely reminder ahead of the Premier League opening weekend.
Erling Haaland’s sour relationship with the Community Shield continued.
Last season against Liverpool, the forward missed two golden chances as City went down 3-1.
Against Arsenal? He didn’t register a single shot – and was substituted after 64 minutes.
Erling Haaland was substituted after 64 minutes without managing to register a single shot
