Manchester City ensured there will be no Arsenal quadruple.
Nico O’Reilly authored a Wembley fairytale as his second-half double secured EFL Cup glory for Manchester City as they beat Arsenal 2-0 in the final.
City travelled to the home of English football in the rare position of underdogs for the showpiece of a competition they have dominated under Pep Guardiola, while Premier League leaders Arsenal were dreaming of a first major trophy since 2020 and the first step towards an unprecedented quadruple.
Yet a cagey first half gave way to City superiority that belied the nine-point gap between the sides in the league in the second, though in reality they were gifted the opener by Arsenal’s EFL Cup goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga.
Having earlier been booked for pulling back Jeremy Doku when well out of his goal, Arrizabalaga put the ball on a plate for hometown hero O’Reilly to open the scoring as he failed to save from Rayan Cherki on the hour mark.
O’Reilly had the simple task on nodding home from point-blank range, and four minutes later he repeated the feat by meeting Matheus Nunes’ cross after excellent work from the right-back and Rodri.
Though Riccardo Calafiori clipped the post and Gabriel Jesus headed against the bar late on, Arsenal rarely looked like mounting a comeback.
Manchester City deny Arsenal quadruple
City saw out a ninth EFL Cup success with little difficulty, and the level of their dominance in the second will raise questions about this being a significant psychological blow as Guardiola’s men aim to tilt the title race back in their direction.
An early double save was required from James Trafford to deny Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka, and at that point, it looked as if an Arsenal onslaught could be in the offing.
Yet it never materialised, and City will have been frustrated not to take the lead just before half-time when Erling Haaland headed over from close range following an excellent Antoine Semenyo cross.
But the City pressure increased after the interval, and the signs that Arrizabalaga could cost Arsenal were there when he misjudged a ball forward and was forced to foul Doku to prevent him from breaking the deadlock.
There was no reprieve for Arrizabalaga nine minutes later, though, as O’Reilly gleefully made the most of his error.
O’Reilly’s second was more a consequence of impressive build-up from City and, it was a setback to which Arsenal had no reply.
Calafiori was unfortunate to see his volley hit the right-hand post, and Trafford was helpless as former City striker Jesus hit the bar with a looping header, but the subsequent forlorn appeals for a foul on Viktor Gyokeres summed up a hugely frustrating day for the Gunners.
