The Manchester City manager, Nick Cushing, was full of praise for Karen Bardsley after her two penalty shootout saves gave Manchester City a Continental League Cup final win against a depleted and exhausted Arsenal.

“She is an incredible goalkeeper and an incredible person. I know when we play KB she comes out with big saves in big moments,”said Cushing.

“I’ve said before, Karen’s situation is evolving, she was Man City and England No 1 and playing every game, now she’s competing for the shirt with England and here.”

Manchester City have the wind in their sails. Unbeaten and top of the league, two points ahead of their cup rivals, albeit having played a game more, they have been waiting for silverware since their 2017 FA Cup win.

This was about revenge. Flying in all competitions this time last year, defeat to Arsenal in the League Cup final sparked a collapse that meant they finished the season empty-handed.

“Last year we didn’t get the strategy right, we ran out of steam,” said Cushing. “It’s all about strategy, we have a clear strategy in the types of players we sign and bring in, you can see that in the squad. Then it’s about numbers of players and when they play and it’s about getting that right and that’s a collective process.”

There was not a better time to be playing Arsenal. Already nursing a hefty injury list that has shaken their fluidity and ended their FA Cup campaign, a further blow was revealed when the team sheet landed and the league top scorer, Miedema, was only deemed fit enough for the bench.

When asked whether he was more proud of his team’s performance this year than last, when they lifted this trophy, Joe Montemurro was emphatic: “Absolutely,” he said. “Let’s be honest, Man City created the chances and we played in a little bit of an un-Arsenal and un-Joe Montemurro way.

“We had to use the resources that were available to us but we found an Arsenal with a big heart, a team that has a massive backbone now and a team which has shown it wants to go forward and be the best.”

To deal with their defensive frailty, Montemurro set up with a back four and Kim Little playing deeper, alongside Dominique Bloodworth. In the first-half it seemed to hold up, just. With neither team able to string a sequence of passes together and both sitting deep, the uninspiring first period was cagey.

As the half drew to a close City upped the ante, Caroline Weir’s corner was met with a powerful Houghton header but Sari van Veenendaal got down low to block it before Gemma Bonner put the follow up wide from two yards out.

Karen Bardsley celebrates with the trophy after her two crucial penalty saves in the shootout. Photograph: Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

The second half picked up where the first left off. With Bloodworth booked for bringing down Parris, Weir stepped up, her free-kick from the halfway line catching a backpedaling Parris who looped her athletic header over Van Veenendaal but it dipped on to the bar and Arsenal cleared.

In the 68th minute, with Arsenal shaking, Montemurro threw caution to the wind, bringing on Miedema to try and spark some life into their attack. The best chance of extra time fell at the feet of Parris, the all-time WSL top-scorer, who outpaced Louise Quinn, but Van Veenendaal came racing out to knock the ball from her feet before reaching back to grasp it from her stretching legs.

Then it was penalties. Stanway scored for City before Van Veenendaal kept out Hemp. Claire Emslie, Houghton and Beckie all finished for City, and while Little and Bloodworth scored for Arsenal, Williamson and Van de Donk drew fine saves from Bardsley.

“It will galvanise us, it gives us momentum,” said Cushing. “We lost this last year and it went downhill pretty quickly. I don’t know if it will effect them [Arsenal], we just have to focus on ourselves.

Montemurro, who turned his back on the shootout, was clear they will not give up the title without a fight: “I’m not going to lie and say the League and getting in the Champions League hasn’t been our major focus, but we do want to compete and be at our best in every tournament. Now we can be a little bit more calculated in the way we approach the title and try to win this thing.”