CARDIFF, Wales -- Arsenal thrashed Manchester City 3-0 at the Principality Stadium to win the Community Shield and give Enzo Maresca a harrowing debut as City boss.
The Gunners had a dream start in Cardiff after Ricardo Calafiori put them ahead in 24 seconds after a neat through ball from Myles Lewis-Skelly. The left-back, who doesn't shy away from going forward, completely wrongfooted compatriot Gianluigi Donnarumma with his finish into the bottom corner.
There were significantly more red shirts than blue in the Principality Stadium, and the early goal only raised their decibel levels. New signing Bruno Guimarães made his first start for the club and quickly endeared himself to the Arsenal fans with his distribution and tough-tackling.
However, it was Arsenal's other summer signing -- Christos Tzolis -- who helped them find their second. The Greece international's sharp header across goal was headed home by Kai Havertz near the 30-minute mark. It came at an opportune time for the Gunners, as City, and Doku in particular, had just started to hit their stride going forward.
The half ended as eventfully as it began, with Erling Haaland drawing a superb save from David Raya and Martin Ødegaard having an effort cleared off the line by Josko Gvardiol.
The Arsenal captain wasn't to be denied after the break and after more tidy work from Tzolis, he emphatically sat-down Donnarumma and fired past him with aplomb.
- Match stats and lineups: Arsenal 3-0 Man City
- As it happened: Arsenal ease past City in Cardiff
It effectively sealed the game in the 48th minute, and both managers used the majority of the second half to rotate through their squad and shift one eye towards the start of the Premier League season next week.
On the evidence of their showing on Sunday, Arsenal will go into their opener against Coventry City on Friday with their confidence sky-high.
New signings on show in Cardiff
Both managers put paid to the suggestion that the Community Shield is a glorified friendly and named starting lineups that won't be dissimilar to the ones they will pick when the Premier League season begins.
There were three debutants at the Principiality -- Guimarães and Tzolis for Arsenal, Elliot Anderson for Man City. Anderson was a surprise pick in the lineup, seeing as he had only linked up with his new teammates this week and hasn't played since England's World Cup third-place playoff. He was understandably far from his metronomic self and being paired alongside a 32-year-old Mateo Kovacic meant City's midfield were lacking in bite or energy.
Guimarães caught the eye with his distribution and tough-tackling style, and it didn't take long for Arsenal fans to start serenading their newest signing. His debut lasted just 45 minutes after he was taken off at half-time for Declan Rice.
Tzolis' signing went relatively under the radar this summer and while it's still early days, it looks to be a shrewd piece of business. The 24-year-old impressed in preseason and was solid in his competitive debut. No Arsenal player made more forays into the box in the first-half and his two assists showed different facets to his game. Both, however, highlighted his technical ability.
Replacing a player as beloved as Leandro Trossard wasn't going to be an easy task. But so far, Tzolis has shown he is up to the task.
A sign of things to come?
Too much stock can't be put into the Community Shield result; only once in the last 16 years has a team gone on to win the Premier League after winning it. Ironically, that team was Man City in the 2018-19 season.
Arsenal's win in Cardiff wasn't a statement as much as it was a marker of their intent for the season. They carried themselves like Premier League winners and didn't let up in intensity or drive throughout.
This was evidenced in the way Havertz battled with Josko Gvardiol late in the game for a stray second-ball with the score already 3-0. David Raya's sharp save from Antoine Semenyo late on to ensure his clean sheet was another example of this.
Complacency and lethargy weren't to be found Arsenal's performance. Lifting silverware is a habit and the win in Cardiff will help in building that.