Pictures: Man City beat Arsenal 3-0 to win the Carabao Cup
Goals from Sergio Aguero, Vincent Kompany and David Silva secure Pep Guardiola’s first trophy as City boss
Arsenal 0 Manchester City 3
Pep Guardiola won his first trophy as Manchester City manager after his side beat Arsenal 3-0 in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley Stadium.
Goals from City’s “old guard” Sergio Aguero, Vincent Kompany and David Silva secured the silverware against a lacklustre Arsenal. And for City captain Kompany the result was even more special after enduring a number of injuries in recent seasons.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Kompany said: “It was a difficult game, but as much space there was for us and Arsenal, we did well and controlled the space and I am proud of the team. Winning 3-0 at Wembley is a massive result against any opponent.
“Before the game, I thought I was going to score. I came close during the game so there was some luck on the day, but also self-belief. I have been in the game for 15 years and I have been training well and supporting the lads when I don’t play. When I get the call I want to do the job.”
Now with his first trophy as City boss, and 19th in total as a manager, Guardiola could potentially lead the Sky Blues to a treble this season. City have one foot in the Champions League quarter-finals and are also 13 points clear at the top of the Premier League.
City’s Spanish boss said: “We’re so happy, and a big congratulations to all of Manchester City, and our fans. This trophy is for Manchester City and not for me. The first half we were not good, there were a lot of mistakes, in the second half we played with a lot more courage and personality - we were outstanding.”
While Guardiola, Kompany and the City fans celebrated with the trophy at Wembley, for Arsenal and boss Arsene Wenger it was another disappointing result in a league cup final.
Wenger has won seven FA Cups and three Premier League titles as Arsenal boss but the league cup still eludes him. Today was the Frenchman’s third defeat in league cup finals after losses against Chelsea in 2007 and Birmingham in 2011.
He was left to reflect on missed chances against City and also believed the second goal was offside. But Wenger did admit that City deserved the win.
“I felt the game, we had the first good chance, a very easy one that we missed,” said Wenger. “After that we made a big mistake for their first goal. But we controlled them pretty well in the first half, but they came out in the second half, and we were unlucky because the second goal was offside.
“But congratulations to Man City, they deserve the win. You have to accept being criticised when you lose games. But I believe we have to recover quickly. We got to the final, we lost, so now we have to focus on the next Premier League game.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
The Vietnamese migrants crossing the Channel
The Explainer 2024 has seen a surge in the numbers of Vietnamese migrants making the illegal passage into the UK
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
How to make the most of your leftover pumpkins
The Week Recommends As the Halloween fun wraps up, snap up pumpkins still on sale and don't leave your jack-o-lanterns to rot
By Tess Foley-Cox Published
-
How Harris and Trump differ on education
The Explainer Trump wants to disband the Department of Education. Harris wants to boost teacher pay.
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
The wit and wisdom of Sven-Göran Eriksson
In Depth The first foreign coach to manage England on football, life and death
By The Week Staff Published
-
The Premier League's spending cap: levelling the playing field?
Talking Point Top clubs oppose plans to link spending to income of lowest-earning club, but rule could prevent success gap from widening
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
English football and the etiquette of leaving the stadium early
Talking Point The belief that 'true fans stay to the end' does not always apply
By The Week UK Published
-
2023-2024 Premier League predictions: champions, relegation and golden boot
feature A look at the top flight talking points and pundit picks for the new season
By Mike Starling Published
-
‘Genuine visionary’: is Pep Guardiola the greatest of all time?
feature Spaniard has now won two trebles following Man City’s Champions League triumph
By The Week Staff Published
-
Champions League final: Man City vs. Inter predictions and preview
feature Can Guardiola’s team finally win the Champions League and complete a historic treble?
By Mike Starling Last updated
-
Man City: can ‘one of the best sides in history’ win the treble?
feature Guardiola’s Premier League champions have two more trophies in their sights
By The Week Staff Published
-
Premier League: Man City vs. Arsenal predictions
feature What the pundits say about tonight’s title race showdown at the Etihad
By Mike Starling Last updated