Arsenal had another fixture added to their preseason schedule after Manchester City won the Champions League with their 1-0 win over Inter Milan earlier this month. The victory meant a number of things for both teams for their schedules but the one which affected both was the clash at Wembley the weekend before the start of the new Premier League season.
Both sides will face-off in the Community Shield. Man City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak has admitted the importance of continuing to win these silverware accolades despite of the treble they just secured.
“You look at next season and guess what? Look what we have next year," he said.
“Look what we have this summer. We have the Charity Shield, we have the Super Cup, we have the Club World Cup.
“For the first time, this club is going to be competing in the UEFA Super Cup and the Club World Cup. And we want to win these.
“We want to win these, and we want to add them to the history of this great club, to the legacy of this great club.”
Not only is the Community Shield of importance but Al Mubarak highlights the other games City will have to play. A European Super Cup clash with Europa League winners Sevilla, a side they’ve faced four times, winning every single one.
They’ll travel to Saudi Arabia in December to play the Club World Cup from the semi-final stage. The dates of the tournament are set for December 11 to 22, although the Citizens will be there for the final two rounds, should they win the semi-final.
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Man City are due to play Crystal Palace on December 16 and Brentford on December 23. These matches face potential rescheduling making the fixtures even more congested.
Arsenal might therefore have a slight advantage over City next season revealed by their title rivals’ chairman. The Gunners are focused on an attempt to strengthen the depth of their squad to better compete with Pep Guardiola’s side.
Failing to do so would be a serious error on the club’s part, especially with this information regarding City’s even more intense schedule. City themselves are looking to strengthen their squad and have moved for Chelsea Matteo Kovacic and RB Leipzig’s Josko Gvardiol.
Arsenal have made an offer to Ilkay Gundogan who could move on a free this summer, but Al Mubarak confirmed he hopes the German stays. He said: “I hope there's more chapters to that legacy. Obviously, Ilkay has to make big life decisions for him. But in the end, it’s fully understandable, we always have to respect our players, their wishes.”
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