Carragher urges Man City to keep Rodri after Arsenal's 3-0 Community Shield drubbing

Arsenal dismantled Manchester City 3-0 in the Community Shield at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on Sunday, with Riccardo Calafiori’s goal after just 24 seconds setting the tone for a commanding display by the Premier League champions.

Kai Havertz doubled the lead with a close-range header before captain Martin Odegaard wrapped up the win with a clever finish three minutes after half-time, leaving new City manager Enzo Maresca with a sobering start to his tenure.

The result prompted an immediate reaction from Jamie Carragher, who took to X to make his view plain: “Arsenal 3-0. Man City have to keep Rodri.” The former Liverpool defender’s message came after Maresca had omitted the Spanish midfielder — along with Savinho — from his matchday squad amid ongoing transfer speculation.

Rodri has entered the final 12 months of his contract at the Etihad, and Barcelona have been pushing hard to sign him. The Catalan club submitted a second bid worth more than £51 million earlier this week, though City are understood to be holding out for at least £70 million for the World Cup winner. Shortly after Carragher’s post, transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano reported that Rodri is closing in on a move to Barcelona after City gave the green light to their latest offer.

Maresca had addressed the situation in his pre-match press conference, saying “anything can happen” while the transfer window remains open. After the defeat, the City head coach pointed to the early concession as a decisive moment.

“I think the goal we conceded after 25 seconds unfortunately affected the game in that moment,” Maresca said. “After the goal, the reaction was quite good before they scored the second one — we had three or four chances to score and draw the game — but unfortunately we conceded the second one and it became more complicated.”

Maresca acknowledged there is plenty of work ahead, adding: “We have many things to work on. The season’s just started so there are many things we need to do better, but even when we win games there are things we need to do better.”

The result hands Arsenal a confidence-boosting win ahead of the new Premier League season, while City face a potentially disruptive summer if their midfield anchor departs before the window closes.