Darwin Nunez shaded Erling Haaland of their first matchup by scoring Liverpool’s closing objective because it beat Manchester City 3-1 within the Community Shield on Saturday.
City, final season’s English Premier League champion, and Liverpool, the FA and League Cup winner, paraded their massive summer season signings at King Power Stadium in Leicester but it surely was the Uruguay worldwide who upstaged City’s Haaland.
Nunez got here off the bench within the 59th minute with the rating at 1-1 and his aerial presence received the late penalty from which Mohamed Salah put Liverpool in entrance for a second time.
But the previous Benfica striker, having earlier been denied a objective by City goalkeeper Ederson, was not completed there and stooped to go dwelling his first for the Reds in home competitors in added time.
Triumph for @LFC within the first bout of the 2022-23 season! 🏆
The Reds dealt the primary blow of the brand new season to @ManCity, as they claimed a 3-1 win to seal victory within the 2022 #CommunityShield! 🥊 pic.twitter.com/1LZUe0Cvee
— Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) July 30, 2022
One new City signing did make his mark — former River Plate ahead Julian Alvarez coming off the bench to cancel out Trent Alexander-Arnold’s opener — however the focus was actually on the large males up prime.
The conventional season curtainraiser performed out as anticipated with England’s prime greatest sides going at it as soon as once more, but it surely was the nuance of what the brand new signings would possibly deliver which attracted the intrigue.
Haaland scored 86 objectives in 89 matches for Borussia Dortmund earlier than his summer season transfer and he’s seemingly so as to add many extra for City as soon as he they usually have adjusted to one another.
The Norway worldwide had the fewest touches of any participant within the first half — eight — and the service he acquired all through was scant. But he was at all times a risk, and his final likelihood in stoppage time was his worst shot when he blasted towards the crossbar when confronted with an open objective six yards out.
The #EmiratesFACup winners have now received the #CommunityShield 🙌
More silverware for @LFC 🏆 pic.twitter.com/E9zxENRv0I
— Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) July 30, 2022
Nunez, nevertheless, justified supervisor Jurgen Klopp’s determination to proceed his integration from the bench. He scored 4 second-half objectives in a preseason pleasant towards Leipzig however that was not sufficient to influence Klopp to start out him.
But when he was launched he was a bundle of power and, not like City with Haaland, Liverpool gave the impression to be higher outfitted to complement his skills.
With just about his first contact he was introduced down by Ederson, who was spared by an offside flag, after which the City goalkeeper raced out to dam Nunez’s shot along with his chest after Jordan Henderson performed him via.
Nunez is extra a conventional No. 9 and fewer the multifunctional participant Klopp often prefers however that may work to his benefit and when he climbed highest to go down, the ball struck the arm of Ruben Dias.
Referee Craig Pawson waved away handball claims however having been suggested to seek the advice of the pitchside monitor he awarded a penalty and Salah swept previous Ederson.
But Nunez was not completed there, and his poacher’s intuition noticed him stoop to go dwelling Robertson’s knockdown in added time.
It was a pulsating end to a sport which ebbed and flowed, with Alexander-Arnold placing Liverpool forward within the twenty first minute from a go rolled invitingly by Salah.
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City improved within the second half and Alvarez, launched concurrently Nunez, equalised within the seventieth after third-choice goalkeeper Adrian saved Phil Foden’s preliminary effort however fumbled the rebound. Alvarez adopted within the exalted footsteps of Sergio Aguero and Carlos Tevez as solely the third Argentine to attain within the Community Shield.
He will, nevertheless, nonetheless play second fiddle to Haaland whereas Nunez has begun the method of creating himself as Liverpool’s long-term choice up entrance and guaranteeing the summer season sale of Sadio Mane to Bayern Munich rapidly turns into an afterthought.
