Arsenal beat Monaco on penalties to win Emirates Cup

Arsenal lifted their seventh Emirates Cup after a 1-1 draw with Monaco, who lost on penalties after Aaron Ramsdale saved a penalty from Japan's Takumi Minamino to emerge as the star of the final.

Mikel Arteta's men, so far, have shown themselves to be a rather inconsistent team this summer. It is a rollercoaster of results: they are capable of conceding draws against teams like Watford or Nuremberg (both 1-1), defeats against Manchester United (0-2) or victories against Barcelona (5-3) or MLS All-Stars (0-5).

They fielded a line-up with a couple of their new faces from the summer in their favourite summer trophy. Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber were in Arteta's eleven, which left key players from last season such as Jorginho, Martin Odegaard and Gabriel on the bench. Others such as Martinelli, Thomas Partey, Aaron Ramsdale and Saliba did start.

Arsenal were aiming for their seventh title in 12 editions. Only Hamburg, New York Red Bulls, Galatasaray, Valencia and Lyon have managed to snatch the trophy from the Gunners, which began in 2007 and is played in a single match from 2019. It started badly in their bid to add another summer trophy to their trophy cabinet as, on the half-hour mark, Mohamed Camara dribbled past Martinelli and his to cross to the penalty spot was headed into the net by Youssouf Fofana.

 

August 3, 2023

Monaco's joy was short-lived as they conceded an equaliser on the stroke of half-time. Martinelli made amends for his defensive mistake and swung in a pinpoint corner that Randy Nketiah volleyed home to level the scores. Arsenal took an undeserved prize. Monaco, for most of the first half, were the better side. However, the second-half introduction of Odegaard and Jorginho gave Arteta's side more control as they struggled to find the net for 45 minutes.

In the end, the game ended in a draw and the match was decided by a shoot-out in which Ramsdale saved Minamino's penalty to keep the Emirates Cup at home.

 

August 2, 2023