At the 14th time of asking, Arsene Wenger got the better of Jose Mourinho as his Arsenal side recorded a 1-0 victory over Chelsea in the Community Shield at Wembley this afternoon.
Not only did the win mark a personal triumph for Wenger, it was also the first time that his men had beaten their West London rivals in eight attempts - a run that dated back to 2011.
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After what had been a quiet opening to proceedings, the game sprung into life in the 24th minute. Sixty seconds earlier Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois was on hand to hold Theo Walcott's near-post header, but the Belgian could do nothing to stop Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's rising left-footed shot from flying into the top corner of his net.
Not only had the England midfielder given his side the lead, it was Arsenal's first goal against the Blues in 506 minutes of action.
In response to the deadlock being broken Chelsea created two chances for Ramires in quick succession, but the Brazilian curled the first of those from the edge of the area just wide, while his second attempt from just six yards out saw him head off target.
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If the first 45 minutes had been slightly bereft of clear cut opportunities, the same could not have been said of the second half as both managers made a number of alterations.
The first of those fell the way of Chelsea's Player of the Season in 2014-15 when Cesc Fabregas played in Eden Hazard on the hour mark, but under pressure from retreating Arsenal centre-back Laurent Koscielny, his shot from close range flew over Petr Cech's crossbar.
Then, 10 minutes later Cech was called to make his first meaningful save in Arsenal colours when he scampered across his line in time to push clear a curling free-kick struck by his former teammate Oscar.
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Meanwhile, up the other end the Gunners remained a threat and they went close to doubling their advantage with 72 minutes on the clock when Olivier Giroud, who had replaced Walcott earlier in the half, darted towards the near post, only for his effort to fly over the crossbar.
Another opportunity fell Arsenal's way four minutes from time when Santi Cazorla found himself with time and space inside the area, only for his tame effort to be saved by Courtois, before Aaron Ramsey's deflected effort from the rebound just missed the target.
It did not end up being a crucial failing, though, as despite some late pressure from the champions, the Arsenal defence and new keeper Cech stood firm to claim English football's first trophy of the campaign.
Liam Apicella
