Posted by Chinenye on Thu 20th Aug, 2026 - tori.ng
Pep Guardiola has explained the key reason behind Manchester City's heavy Community Shield defeat to Arsenal.
(Pep Guardiola. Photo Credit: Punch News)
Manchester City's manager says their poor performance in a Community Shield loss to Arsenal came down to lack of pre-season preparation.
City started the match with four players who hadn't played any minutes during pre-season.
Arsenal, meanwhile, had all 11 starting players with some competitive minutes under their belts before the game.
The difference showed immediately. Arsenal scored after just 24 seconds and took control from there, ultimately winning 3-0 convincingly.
The manager said the lack of preparation hurt City's ability to work together as a team.
Players thrown straight into a high-intensity competitive match without pre-season minutes struggled with the physical demands.
Arsenal looked sharper and better coordinated from the start.
The defeat served as a reminder of how important match fitness and team familiarity are at the beginning of a new season.