If anyone considered this a glorified kickabout they should have watched Arsenal’s players wheel ecstatically towards their support after Fábio Vieira, finding Stefan Ortega’s top‑right corner, settled the penalty shootout and struck the first blow of 2023‑24.
They would certainly have learned from the beam on Mikel Arteta’s face as he climbed up to the royal box for the Community Shield presentation. There was no chance of anyone wiping away his grin and, if his players needed a psychological reset after the disappointment of their tailspin last season, they received everything they could have asked for here.
