Arsenal 3–0 Manchester City — Community Shield win dampens Enzo Maresca’s debut

Arsenal routed Manchester City 3-0 in the Community Shield in Cardiff, handing City a heavy defeat in Enzo Maresca’s first competitive game in charge. The victory gave Mikel Arteta’s side the first trophy of the new season and marked City’s first official match without Pep Guardiola on the bench.

Match turning points

The game burst into life almost immediately: in the 24th second Calafiori, following an excellent assist from Luis Skelly, opened the scoring to spark wild celebrations among Arsenal supporters at the stadium in Cardiff.

Kai Havertz doubled the lead in the 28th minute with a powerful header, and shortly after the break, in the 48th minute, Martin Ødegaard struck to make it 3-0 — a margin that turned the fixture decisively in Arsenal’s favour.

City were unable to mount a meaningful comeback after the early onslaught, and the result will raise questions as they prepare to begin their Premier League campaign less than a week from the Community Shield.

For Arsenal, the win is an encouraging statement of intent heading into the new season; for City, it was an unwelcome start under new leadership as Maresca looks to steady the team following Guardiola’s departure.

The crowd reaction in Cardiff underlined the significance of the result for Arsenal fans, while Manchester City will have time to regroup before competitive league matches resume.

Photo: press material from the event