Badly misjudged mind games and a balloon – the Community Shield penalties unpacked

Manchester City won the Community Shield after triumphing in a thrilling penalty shoot-out at Wembley on Saturday.

Bernardo Silva’s late equaliser cancelled out Alejandro Garnacho’s strike for United, leading to a shoot-out which was eventually decided – after some eye-catching twists and turns – by Manuel Akanji’s powerful effort.

It was a shoot-out packed with drama, including the unsuccessful mind games of Andre Onana, a calamitous effort by Jonny Evans and another painful Wembley moment for Jadon Sancho.

Onana’s invitation to Haaland

How do you stop the most formidable goalscoring force in English football? Andre Onana attempted to do so by turning this shoot-out into a psychological battle. As Erling Haaland prepared to take his penalty, Onana moved a few steps to his right, way off-centre in his goal.

To underline the point further, Onana even gestured towards the open space on his left. It was the most obvious of invitations to the City striker.

Haaland, though, did not take the bait. Instead of aiming for the unoccupied corner, he simply stroked his effort to Onana’s right.

By the time he had connected with the ball, Onana had dived across to the other side of the goal. As he walked away, Haaland then appeared to chuckle to himself.

Onana attempted a similar trick earlier in pre-season, in a shoot-out against Arsenal. It did not work on that occasion, either, as Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes scored emphatically past the United goalkeeper.

Horror moment for Evans

Jonny Evans was not among the five chosen penalty takers for United, and indeed was not called upon until the score was tied at 6-6 and seven players had already stepped up.

At 36, Evans is a reliable and experienced professional but he is evidently not an expert from 12 yards. His effort was disastrous and, to those not of a United persuasion, perhaps even comical in its waywardness.

Even the technique looked unusual, in all the wrong ways, as Evans made contact with the ball. Leaning back, he lofted his side-footed effort a significant distance over Ederson’s crossbar.

Such was the height of the effort, the ball was too high even before it had reached the six-yard line. Evans could only bury his face in his hands. Akanji promptly scored next to win the game for City.

Sancho’s Wembley misfortune continues

Even some City fans must have felt a pang of sympathy for poor Jadon Sancho as his effort was saved by Ederson. It was in this stadium that Sancho missed for England in the shoot-out of the Euro 2020 final, and here he once again could not find the net from the spot.

It was an agonising moment, not only because of Sancho’s Wembley history but also because the ball bounced across the line after it was touched onto the post by Ederson.

Speaking afterwards, Erik ten Hag stood behind Sancho, who has been reintegrated into the United squad following his exile last season.

“He is a very good penalty taker,” said Ten Hag. “I had, and I have, no doubts to let him score a penalty. In the future he will take penalties.”

Ederson the penalty maestro once again

City goalkeeper Ederson is not only an expert at saving penalties, as he did to deny Sancho, but also at scoring them. He stepped up in the high-pressure shoot-out against Real Madrid last season, burying his effort with confidence, and did so again here against United.

It was a typically calm effort, involving a slightly stuttered run-up akin to many of the world’s top strikers. Onana was fooled, diving the wrong way, and Ederson converted without fuss.

“He is maybe the best penalty taker in our team,” said Akanji of Ederson. “Obviously Erling as well. I haven’t seen him [Ederson] miss for us. I know when he takes a penalty, it’s a goal. He saved us today with one good save so I am really happy for him.”