Arsenal won at Wembley for the second time this month after beating Liverpool 5-4 on penalties in the Community Shield.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang opened the scoring with a superb curling effort after 12 minutes before substitute Takumi Minamino equalised in the second half.
The Gunners were ruthless from 12-yards converting all five of their penalties to win the game after Rhian Brewster’s effort had clattered off the crossbar.
Here are the key players from the game…
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – 8
Arsenal’s Mr Wembley delivered yet again. Aubameyang netted back-to-back doubles at Wembley to secure the FA Cup for the Gunners and he continued his hot streak inside the national stadium with a beautiful arcing finish that left a sprawling Alisson clutching at thin air as he attempted to keep it out. Just as he did against Manchester City and Chelsea, Aubameyang had the final say, dispatching the winning spot-kick.
Aubameyang celebrated a double against Rennes in 2019 by donning a Black Panther mask and while he was without that accessory this time, he fittingly crossed his arms to form the Wakanda salute in tribute to the film’s star Chadwick Boseman following his tragic death from cancer earlier on in the day.
The perfect celebration ???????? #WakandaForever#CommunityShield pic.twitter.com/qFm0NMycIc
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) August 29, 2020
With each big goal that Aubameyang delivers, Arsenal fans will be getting increasingly twitchy over his contractual situation. It has been 13 days since Aubameyang posted a cryptic hourglass emoji on Twitter hinting at possible contract extension and Arteta will be desperate to tie his key man down to a long-term deal soon.
Sadio Mane – 6
Sadio Mane was typically busy and industrious in his work but the finishing touch that he has sharpened so ruthlessly at Anfield surprisingly deserted him at Wembley. It was a difficult game for Liverpool’s attackers to shine given Arsenal sat deep and restricted space in an effort to crowd them out.
It was a ploy that largely worked although a team of Liverpool’s quality will always craft chances as they did for Mane twice in the second half. The first saw the Senegalese race onto a precise through ball down the wing from Andrew Robertson only to fire straight at Emiliano Martinez while the second had the same outcome after Mane had expertly brought a ball down from a dinked Mohamed Salah cross before a heavy touch narrowed the opportunity.
They were the kind of chances that Mane usually snaffles up but 40 goals in his previous two Premier League campaigns suggest he will soon rediscover his scoring touch.
Bukayo Saka – 8
Gareth Southgate opted against naming any specialist left backs in his England squad for next month’s Nations League double-header against Iceland and Denmark with Bukayo Saka‘s omission resulting in eyebrows being raised in the red half of north London given his end of season form.
The England boss might have felt his decision was vindicated when Saka started the Community Shield as far away from left back as physically possible on the right wing but the 18-year-old’s performance will have given him plenty to ponder. It was from Saka’s raking crossfield pass that Aubameyang opened the scoring while he almost added a second assist soon after for Eddie Nketiah. Late on in the half, Saka fizzed an inviting ball right along the six-yard-box, this time from the left.
Similarly to other precocious Three Lions talents Phil Foden and Mason Greenwood, Saka never looks phased and always has an impact on a game. Only Kevin De Bruyne with 22 and Trent Alexander-Arnold with 15 have supplied more assists among Premier League players since the start of last season than Saka (13) has. A senior England call will surely come soon.
Emiliano Martinez – 7
Emiliano Martinez was a revelation after coming into the side during project restart, playing a pivotal role in Arsenal’s strong end to the campaign and FA Cup win. A full decade after his arrival from Argentine side Independiente, Martinez finally had an extended run in the side and he most certainly made the most of it.
Having had a long-overdue taste of first-team football, Martinez is understandably keen to continue playing regularly, a prospect that may not be possible at Arsenal with Bernd Leno fit again after a knee injury. According to The Athletic, Martinez could be sold for £10m with Valencia and Real Betis monitoring his situation with interest.
Against Liverpool, Martinez showed why he would be a big miss at Arsenal if he were to leave this summer, making a big save to deny Sadio Mane in a one-on-one early on in the second half and then another from close-range with ten minutes remaining.
Takumi Minamino – 7
Signed by Liverpool in January after impressing against them over two games for Red Bull Salzburg in the Champions League group stage, Takumi Minamino had a slow start to his Liverpool career. A return of no goals or assists from ten Premier League games – eight of which were as a substitute – perhaps explained why Minamino looked so sheepish during Liverpool’s title celebrations.
With Liverpool’s attack struggling to break through Arsenal’s low block defence, Jurgen Klopp summoned Minamino from the bench to change the game and he succeeded in that task by scoring the equaliser. After some intricate inter-play around the area the ball bobbled to Minamino who confidently slotted his finish beyond Martinez.
Aside from the goal, Minamino looked bright and far more in tune with his teammates than he did during the second half of last season. That will please Jurgen Klopp greatly as while Liverpool’s first-choice front three is exceptional, game-changing options off the bench are needed when they are not firing. After 15 games, Minamino is off the mark.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3hF9JbP
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