Aaron Ramsdale hopes the Community Shield will have a lasting impact (Picture: Getty Images)
Aaron Ramsdale believes Arsenal have overcome a ‘mental block’ by beating Manchester City to win the Community Shield, having lost their previous eight matches against Pep Guardiola’s side.
There were dramatic scenes at Wembley as Leandro Trossard scored an equaliser in the last minute of injury time, after Cole Palmer appeared to have won the game for City with a superb effort after 77 minutes.
The game went to penalties where Kevin De Bruyne hit the crossbar and Rodri saw his effort saved by Ramsdale to give Arsenal a 4-1 win.
While it was a narrow victory in a pre-season game, Ramsdale is hoping that the Community Shield will have a lasting effect, giving Arsenal more confidence against the treble winners.
Asked what the victory means for the Gunners, Ramsdale told ITV: ‘I’m not sure, I’ll be honest, because they are a bit behind us in their pre-season. But what it is to us is a statement to us that we can go and beat them.
‘It’s a marker to know that we can go and beat Man City in a big game when it matters.
‘I’m not sure what it will be like going through the season, but we now have that mental block, as you might say, gone and we’re ready now to push all season long.’
Ramsdale saved Rodri’s effort in the penalty shoot out (Picture: Getty Images)
Summer signing Declan Rice started the game for Arsenal and was thrilled to be getting his hands on silverware in his first match for his new club.
‘I am buzzing, this is what I visioned when I joined,’ he said. ‘To win today, my first for the club.
Declan Rice had an enjoyable start to his Arsenal career (Picture: Getty Images)
‘I feel I’ve grown a lot in the last three weeks. There’s a lot of information to take in of what the manager wants. I’m eager to learn and keep improving.
‘I’m sure we can achieve anything this season – we just need to remain focused.’
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‘We can go and beat Man City in a big game when it matters.’