Arsenal picked up a battling 3-2 win over Manchester City in Sweden on an evening that saw Gabriel Paulista sustain a nasty-looking injury.
The Gunners turned the game on its head in the second half after Sergio Aguero had opened the scoring for City 30 minutes in.
Alex Iwobi, Theo Walcott and Chuba Akpom were all on target, but the injury which forced Gabriel - Arsenal's most experienced defender heading into the new campaign - to leave the field was a real blow.
There was time for Kelechi Iheanacho to pull one back for the Citizens late on, although it proved too little too late at the Ullevi Stadium.
Relive how the 90 minutes of action unfolded with Sports Mole's live text coverage below.
Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of the pre-season friendly meeting between Arsenal and Manchester City at the Ullevi Stadium in Gothenburg. This match marks the final summer outing for both sides, meaning one last chance for Arsene Wenger and Pep Guardiola to experiment before the real business gets underway in just a week's time.
It has not been the longest of pre-season schedules for either side, perhaps down to the fact that this summer saw both Euro 2016 and the Copa America take place at the same time - a real rarity. Hardly ideal for either side, but Arsenal have at least had a few extra friendlies than their opponents to check out some of the fringe players aiming to break into the squad this coming campaign.
While Arsenal travelled to the United States, where they would beat an MLS All-Star team 2-1 and Mexican giants Guadalajara 3-1, City had a disrupted visit to the Far East. Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho was particularly unhappy to see the Manchester derby called off due to the poor state of the pitch, caused by torrential downpours, but it must have been even more frustrating for Guardiola who has just two games under his belt.
This third outing of the summer is the most important yet. Not only do the Citizens have to gear up for their Premier League opener with Sunderland in six days' time, they are also taking on a side that could well stand between them and the title over the next nine months or so. With that in mind, let us now turn our attention to some confirmed team news from the Ullevi Stadium.
TEAM NEWS!
ARSENAL XI: Cech, Bellerin, Gabriel, Holding, Monreal, Coquelin, Xhaka, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ramsey, Iwobi, Sanchez
MANCHESTER CITY XI: Caballero, Zabaleta, Fernando, Kolarov, Clichy, Fernandinho, Silva, Delph, Nolito, Sterling, Aguero
As promised by Wenger earlier in the week, Aaron Ramsey and Alexis Sanchez both return to the Arsenal fold following their summer exploits with Wales and Chile respectively. Neither featured in the 8-0 thrashing of Viking FK on Friday evening but, with both likely to start against Liverpool next weekend, Wenger is clearly desperate for two of his more valuable players to gain some playing time.
Arsenal's initial starting lineup had Theo Walcott starting up top - an interesting mistake considering Wenger's comments in the press today, more on which a little later. It is Sanchez and Alex Iwobi who are given the nod this evening, however, with the latter looking good value to start against Liverpool in that home opener due to the absence of any other attacking options.
Wenger has also interestingly gone with Rob Holding at the back, suggesting that the summer signing from League One Bolton Wanderers could well start next weekend. Gabriel Paulista has been struggling in terms of fitness, but two games in three days means he is also a certainty to feature against Liverpool. The full-backs are as you would expect this close to the new season - Hector Bellerin and Nacho Monreal given the nod, while Petr Cech is restored in goal.
Wenger could surprise us with his formation slightly, but it seems likely that he will go with two deep-lying midfielder this evening - Francis Coquelin and Granit Xhaka. The latter in particular looks a real smart purchase by the Gunners, but the money spent on recruiting star names has well and truly dried up since the Switzerland international was brought to North London in May.
Aaron Ramsey enjoyed a summer to remember with national side Wales, as did Alexis Sanchez who saw his side go all the way in the Copa America. Both are restored to the Gunners' starting lineup this evening with one eye on the opening league fixture against Liverpool in a week, with Ramsey sporting his new No.8 shirt for the first time at the Ullevi Stadium.
So that is Arsenal, but what about Man City? Well we already knew that Guardiola would be without two of his summer signings in Leroy Sane and Ilkay Gundogan this evening - the latter a long-term absentee due to an injury picked up last season with Borussia Dortmund. The Citizens can however turn to Nolito, a big-money buy from Celta Vigo, who is handed a start.
Guardiola has decided to go with Fabian Delph in midfield - a move that will surely concern a large number of City supporters! Raheem Sterling, now back from a disappointing summer with England, is selected in attack with star striker Sergio Aguero and the aforementioned Nolito. David Silva will need to create from midfield in the absence of Kevin de Bruyne and Sane.
City's troubles at the back are well summed up by the fact that Fernando and Aleksandar Kolarov are tasked with filling in there, unless Guardiola is looking to once again put his tactical spin on things with players being shunted into different roles. Willy Caballero is the man given the nod in goal, meaning England international Joe Hart must sit out this final pre-season friendly.
PREVIOUS MEETINGS! These two teams have met on a regular basis in the recent past, of course, particularly in high-profile games towards the top of the Premier League. The Gunners have certainly had the better of things in terms of league meetings, having won the last two in an unbeaten run stretching four games. City have actually lost more Prem games (23) against the Gunners than any other side.
Arsenal will certainly take another morale-boosting win this evening, which will put them in good stead heading into the new campaign. The Gunners may have finished second last season, capitalising on Tottenham Hotspur's slip-up in doing so, but it was a disappointing campaign on the whole. With each of their title rivals performing so badly, Arsenal had a dream run to the Prem crown - at least, that should have been the case.
Manager Arsene Wenger is now into the final year of his contract, of course, and there are one or two whispers around the Emirates Stadium that he will not see that long-running deal renewed. That will surely depend on results between now and Christmas, with the Frenchman once again failing to truly strengthen his side due to what he claims as being a lack of high-quality options.
The truth is there are options out there for the areas that need strengthening, with Arsenal set to go into the new campaign fielding Gabriel alongside Holding in the heart of defence. At the other end, Iwobi will likely lead the attack due to the absence of Olivier Giroud - hardly ideal for a team that should be looking to make a quick start to end their title hoodoo in the top flight.
Wenger claimed this week that money is certainly not an issue for Arsenal, but the Gunners refuse to go high with their bids when chasing a player Gonzalo Higuain, who went on to join Juventus for a fee just north of £70m. The Frenchman can hardly be blamed for breaking years of tradition for a player untested in English football, although so often the Gunners fail to add to what is a decent-looking side on paper and - more times than not - find out the hard way when slipping-up in the title race.
Reports this week suggest that a deal for Valencia defender Shkodran Mustafi is close to being finalised, with the pressure now on to get that deal over the line ahead of the season's opening fixture with Liverpool. Alexandre Lacazette is another who is seemingly on the brink of joining although, again, it has taken Arsenal so long to finalise a move that they have quite simply stagnated. Man City, for example, have their business as good as finished by August 7.
Arsenal have hardly been dealt the easiest of openings to their campaign, either - a home match with Liverpool being followed up by a trip to champions Leicester City. Could we see Theo Walcott in either of those games? Well the Englishman has had a re-think on his future this week, claiming that he does see himself as a winger after all. Wenger disagrees, though, and said on the eve of this game that Walcott will instead remain as a more central attacker.
DID YOU KNOW? Following on from that Walcott debate, it is interesting to know that the Englishman - who did not play a part in this summer's European Championship finals due to his poor form - has three goals in his last two meetings against the Citizens. Walcott bagged just nine in 42 outings last season, while his overall tally is 85 in 334 since joining from Southampton a decade ago.
The Citizens hardly enjoyed the most impressive of campaigns last time out, either, having finished below Arsenal and well out of Leicester's reach down in fourth. Only a slightly better goal difference that Manchester United prevented them from slipping out on the Champions League berths altogether - something which really would have been a disaster for the incoming Guardiola, who has a major task on his hands.
Guardiola has certainly gone the right way about things, quickly putting his stamp on this City side with the addition of £100m worth of talent. Leroy Sane is the highest profile of the lot, joining from Schalke in a deal worth £42.5m after drawn-out negotiations between the two clubs. Gabriel Jesus is one for the future, having been loaned back to his former (current?) side, while Ilkay Gundogan will look to return to action later this year once he recovers from injury.
Marlos Moreno, the latest to join, and Aleksandr Zinchenko are also a nod to the future, with neither likely to play too much of a part this term. Moreno will join up with the Citizens in January, but it is Gundogan, Sane and Nolito who will need to hit the ground running when called upon. A defender is still to come, most likely John Stones, but a deal on that front seems as far away as ever at this moment in time.
Guardiola admits that this is his biggest job yet in terms of the task on his hands but, unlike with most jobs, he will not be given any real time to bed in. His reported wages and his proven pedigree ensures that he must hit the ground running, starting with that meeting against Sunderland next week. After that comes a Champions League playoff tie with Steaua Bucharest - a good draw considering Roma and Monaco were also in the hat - before a trip to Stoke City.
City, as touched upon a little earlier, have played just two friendlies so far this summer - losing 1-0 to Bayern Munich with a second-string side and drawing 1-1 with Borussia Dortmund in normal time. It is a very strange schedule for the off-season, but the Citizens will surely not be too under-prepared with plenty of work being conducted behind-the-scenes on the training ground.
With less than 10 minutes to go until kickoff in Gothenburg, let us check out some of the pre-match comments from both camps.
Pep Guardiola: "Stones is still a player from Everton. That question is about the market, so Txiki [Begiristain] is the right person. I know how it works here in England. I am just a trainer. I give my opinion, my advice to the club and the club decide the best as possible He's an Everton player right now. I don't know what is going on in the future but he play in the memorial for [Wayne] Rooney and against Espanyol, so he's a player for Everton."
Arsene Wenger: "I believe that [Walcott] has all the ingredients to be a great striker, because of the quality of his runs. He is an intelligent player, a good finisher. He is not a great defender so I believe that to use his runs in the final third for us could be very efficient. After that, I think scoring goals playing there, giving him confidence to play there, will slowly convince him maybe that he can be absolutely fantastic there."
Guardiola speaking there about the club's pursuit of Stones, then, while Wenger gave his thoughts on Walcott's best-suited position. Both managers have had to answer plenty of transfer questions during the summer months, as ever, but the time for talking is very nearly over with just six days to go until we are finally underway in the Premier League. Now for one final high-profile friendly, which should prove an entertaining affair for the neutral.
PREDICTION! These two sides would have preferred being closer to home at Wembley Stadium this evening, of course, but instead of the Community Shield - contested between Premier League and FA Cup winners - they must make do with this friendly clash. Hopefully we will see a few goals, with neither side at full strength in the heart of defence, so with that in mind I'll go with a 2-2 draw.
The two sets of players are making their way down the tunnel area at the Ullevi Stadium in Gothenburg, with kickoff now just a couple of minutes away. A big chance for one of these sides to score a mental, as well as literal, victory over their opponents this evening - will either take that chance? We are about to find out...
KICKOFF! One week on from the start of the Euro 2016 season, we are up and running in this final pre-season friendly meeting between Arsenal and Manchester City. All smiles between Guardiola and Wenger on the touchline, but how long will that last in the coming months and years?
Strong support from Arsenal here in Sweden. The surface is very wet due to heavy rain throughout the day, so we can expect to see a few shots from range this evening. City sporting their new black and yellow away kit today, incidentally.
Alexis already giving Fernando a problem, with the makeshift defender dragging down his opponent around 50 yards from goal. Ramsey floats the free kick into the box for Gabriel to glance a yard or so wide of goal.
SHOT! City make a hash of things when attempting to play out from the back; Caballero booting it straight into the feet of Oxlade-Chamberlain who had an empty net to aim for around 35 yards out. Poor attempt in the end that sailed high and wide.
Arsenal started the brighter side in Sweden, perhaps due to the fact that they are closer to match fitness than their opponents, but City have had a spell of knocking the ball around over the past couple of minutes.
Not the brightest of starts to the game, but plenty of time for the teams to grow into it. Xhaka, sent off three times in the Bundesliga last season, clatters into Silva - the man tasked with creating things today - in the centre of the park.
CHANCE! First chance of the game for either side falls the way of Arsenal's Aaron Ramsey. Alexis Sanchez created the move, sending a fine chipped ball into the box for the Welshman to glance onto the roof of the net. Very close to a breakthrough but Ramsey maybe should have done better there.
City still yet to get going in Sweden. Not ideal when they've played two games all summer - the last of which coming nearly a fortnight ago. Arsenal well on top at the moment and looking good value to open the scoring in this opening quarter of the match.
Ramsey's loose ball falls nicely to Bellerin, who is allowed to run straight at the City defence. I say 'defence' - Fernando was essentially alone and did very well to halt the full-back before he could think about shooting.
CHANCE! Another big opening for the Gunners comes and goes. Xhaka slid Oxlade-Chamberlain clean through on goal, but the Englishman's dinked finish over Caballero ended wide of the target. All well and good in a friendly, though you cannot afford to miss those when the real business gets underway.
SHOT! City come to life for the first time in the match - no surprise to see Aguero the man at the heart of the attack. The striker was allowed to drift past Holding and Gabriel before seeing his shot inside the box blocked by Bellerin into the hands of Cech.
OFF THE LINE! Coquelin misses a real sitter as another chance comes and goes for Arsenal. Again it came after a City mishap at the back - Kolarov losing possession deep in his own half which allowed Oxlade-Chamberlain to square to Coquelin. Caballero was nowhere to be seen but the Frenchman had his shot blocked by the one player stationed on the line.
SAVE! Certainly not been a boring affair, has it?! Ramsey with another attempt, this time hitting the target with his strike which Caballero is equal to. Arsenal should be a couple in front in Sweden.
Zabaleta blasts narrowly wide for City in a reminder that Arsenal cannot afford to squander many more chances. Opening 27 minutes of this contest well and truly flown by, despite neither net yet being breached at the Ullevi Stadium.
GOAL! ARSENAL 0-1 MANCHESTER CITY (SERGIO AGUERO)
They have been second best in the opening half-hour, but it is City who have the lead in Sweden. Sterling swung in a delightful cross from the right, which Aguero simply stuck out a foot to divert past a helpless Cech. Holding and Gabriel got to do better there.
So a lesson already learned for Arsenal's players, then - do not let chance after chance pass you by! City continuing with this awkward passing out from the back, which Zabaleta and Kolarov do not look too comfortable with.
A more balanced game since Man City moved ahead. Arsenal dominated the chance prior to Aguero's simple finish, but now it is the Sky Blues who are just about edging the match.
Aguero is seemingly shoved over inside the box, but the referee believes that he went to ground a little too easily. Less than 10 minutes to go now in this first half and City lead through that Aguero goal.
Arsenal knocking the ball around now in an attempt to find a way through City's midfield and defence. They created four or five big chances before falling behind but they have been unable to really trouble their opponents since.
Both managers are likely to make a handful of changes between now and the hour mark. Guardiola in particular will want to run the rule over some of his fringe players, with his side ending this first half in Gothenburg on top.
Some good play down the left from Bellerin helps to create half a chance for the Gunners. The ball bounced around in the City box but no Arsenal player could get a shot away on target. Three minutes of this half left to play.
A punt over the top is chased down by Aguero, who is beaten to the ball by Petr Cech. The Argentine has scored both of City's goals in this shortened pre-season, so can anyone else step up to the plate in the remainder of this one?
HALF TIME: ARSENAL 0-1 MANCHESTER CITY
Manchester City lead Arsenal 1-0 at the break thanks to Sergio Aguero's close-range finish on the half-hour mark. It is the Gunners who have had the better of things overall, although their chances dried up after falling behind at the Ullevi Stadium.
The first chance of the match fell, quite literally, to the feet of Oxlade-Chamberlain when Caballero made a hash of his clearance. The Englishman fired high over the bar, though, in what was a sign of things to come. Ramsey, on his return to the team, squandered a couple of openings of his own in the opening 45 minutes - the first of which came when glancing an Alexis Sanchez cross onto the roof of the net.
Prior to edging ahead, City's only real chance fell the way of Aguero after he drifted past Gabriel Paulista and Rob Holding on the edge of the box to work a shooting position. Hector Bellerin got across well to cover the shot, however, with the ball ending nicely in the hands of Petr Cech between the sticks. Francis Coquelin was the next Gunners player guilty of being profligate in front of goal when failing to covert into a half-empty net, with a City defender blocking his shot on the line.
The Citizens then moves ahead on the half-hour mark thanks to a simple close-range finish from Aguero, as he simply stuck out his boot to divert the ball beyond a helpless Cech following a fine cross into the box from Raheem Sterling. Arsenal struggled to find their feet in the remainder of a half that fast fizzled out. A couple of changes can now be expected at the break from both sides.
As is so often the case, Sergio Aguero is proving the difference for Man City at the midway point of the game. Two in two for him now during pre-season.
RESTART! We are back up and running in Gothenburg, where there is news of some changes to bring you. Walcott and Chambers are on, the latter filling in for Holding at centre-back as Wenger looks to further experiment. Elneny also on for Oxlade-Chamberlain, while Hart replaces Caballero for the Citizens.
Both teams just finding their feet early in this second half, much like we witnessed from the off. Arsenal dominated the opening 20 minutes or so of the game, but they are still waiting for their first chance since falling behind.
Holding and Gabriel had a couple of sloppy moments in that first half - allowing Aguero to tap home from close range and the same man to drift past them beforehand. Chance for Chambers to now impress in front of Wenger.
GOAL! ARSENAL 1-1 MANCHESTER CITY (ALEX IWOBI)
Arsenal are back on level terms in Gothenburg, through a player looking to nail down a starting spot in attack for next week's opener with Liverpool. Walcott picked out the youngster on the edge of the box, and Iwobi simply tucked the ball into the corner. Hart, I'm afraid, should have been doing better from there.
SHOT! Delph remains on the field for the start of this second half, and he has just seen a long-range shot easily held by Cech. Guardiola expected to make a few changes as we enter the final half-hour of this friendly match.
YELLOW CARD! Sergio Aguero the second player to be booked for his rash challenge on Chambers. Fernando the first to be cautioned just a couple of minutes into the match.
Ramsey with a smart first-time pass down the left flank for Walcott, who has time and space when looking up. His cross was simple enough for the City defence to deal with, though, and nothing came of the opening. Never mind - free kick now won right on the edge of the box.
OFF THE BAR! Alexis Sanchez is the man who takes on the free kick from 20 yards out, which he dips almost perfectly into the back of the net. The ball came back off the bar and was cleared away, though, with Joe Hart lucky not to concede a second.
Iwobi with a good ball through the middle for Walcott, who timed his run well but had no options up alongside him. City now preparing a couple of changes to come on for the final 25 minutes or so, with this game well poised two-thirds through.
SAVE! A confidence-boosting save for Joe Hart. Walcott put his boot through the ball but his countryman was equal to it to push aside for a corner. Cazorla, a star performer in the 8-0 win over Viking FK, is now on for Arsenal. Navas replaces Nolito for the Citizens.
SAVE! Navas curls a shot on target which Cech is able to parry. Thankfully for him no City player was there for fire home the rebound. De Bruyne now also on for the Citizens, so more creativity added in midfield. Yaya Toure and Iheanacho also being readied.
ARSENAL SUB! Toure and Iheanacho are now on the field, while Campbell has just replaced goalscorer Iwobi. Plenty of changes being made in this half which is completely disrupting the flow of things unfortunately.
Just a reminder - we will go straight to penalties this evening if the scoreline remains locked at 90 minutes. We are certainly heading that way with chances at a premium as we enter the final 20 minutes of the contest.
GOAL! ARSENAL 2-1 MANCHESTER CITY (THEO WALCOTT)
Maybe Arsene Wenger was right... Walcott superbly chips the ball over the reach of Hart following some good combination play with Sanchez. It was a fine finish from the Englishman, who may well find himself up top for the visit of Liverpool in six days' time.
Just when I mentioned the lack of clear-cut chances, Walcott goes and does that! City now have a little over 15 minutes to find a response, having completely thrown away their one-goal lead. Pens await should the Citizens do so.
ARSENAL SUB! A couple more changes for Arsenal, as Debuchy and Gibbs replace Monreal and Bellerin. No problems at full-back for Arsenal this coming season, at least. Seven alterations made by the Gunners, and it is they who lead.
CHANCE! A rare chance for City, which Toure makes a howler of. De Bruyne got forward down the right and picked out his teammate near the penalty spot, but the Ivorian smashed it high over the bar when unmarked.
SUBS! More changes. Garcia and Zinchenko both introduced for City, while Akpom is given some playing time for the Gunners. Time fast running out now for the Citizens to find a leveller, not helped by the constant stoppages in play.
GOAL! ARSENAL 3-1 MANCHESTER CITY (CHUBA AKPOM)
Poor from City. Really, really poor. A slack pass at the back is latched on to by Walcott, who sees the ball smothered by Hart. The England keeper failed to keep a hold on the ball, though, and Akpom followed in to fire home and earn a morale-boosting win for his side.
GOAL! ARSENAL 3-2 MANCHESTER CITY (KELECHI IHEANACHO)
Well it is not over quite yet. Navas hangs a ball towards the back post, where Iheanacho strains his neck to nod the ball past Cech. A good header from the youngster, who will be looking to push on from an impressive breakthrough campaign last time out.
SAVE! Cech forced into making a big save to deny City a third. Toure struck the ball well but was to be denied by the experience stopper right at the death. Just a minute or so of additional time to come.
A major blow for Arsenal, this, as Gabriel Paulista - the club's most experienced defensive option - is stretched off the field of play. The Brazilian caught his studs in the turf and went down in serious pain, with a lengthy layoff possibly now ahead.
Both sets of players asking the referee to just blow the whistle now. Surprised he didn't when the stretcher first came out, with just seconds of added time scheduled to be played. Bielik now on the field for the remainder of the match.
FULL TIME: ARSENAL 3-2 MANCHESTER CITY
The referee finally brings play to an end on a mixed night for Arsenal. The Gunners showed great character to battle back and turn the game on its head through three second-half goals, but Gabriel Paulista was stretchered off at the end with a nasty-looking injury.
That concludes Sports Mole's live text coverage of events in Gothenburg, but be sure to check out our on-the-whistle report before heading off. Reaction will also follow in due course, including a likely update on the injury sustained by Gabriel.
