Aston Villa 1 Arsenal 0
Unai Emery’s side came into this game fresh off the back of a victory against Man City at Villa Park to make it fourteen consecutive wins at home. Wannabe title contenders Arsenal were the visitors this weekend, facing a very tough task.
The visitors were to carve out the first chance of the game as Saka played a great pass, switching play out to Martinelli. He bent in a cross to the back post but Bukayo Saka could not find a finish on his weaker right foot as he failed to even find the target.
If anyone is still racking their brains for Christmas presents for the Arsenal winger, a right foot would be a great gift to prevent the need for him continuously having to check onto his left foot. It is becoming more predictable than Tory excuses for where their WhatsApp messages have gone.
The Gunners were to play the ultimate price as Tielemans fed the ball into Bailey, who twisted and turned the Arsenal defenders out wide before picking out McGinn in the box. He swivelled onto his left foot and struck the ball past Raya to give Villa the lead.
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Gabriel then played a sublime ball in behind the Aston Villa defence, with Martinelli beating Martinez to the ball and scooping it over him. Fortunately for Emery’s side, Diego Carlos did brilliantly to get back and clear the ball off the line.
Jesus tried to work a shooting opportunity on the edge of the box but just kept on dummying shots and turning back on himself before he was dispossessed. It was like there was a glitch in the matrix or someone was controlling him on the PS4 who didn’t know where the shoot button was.
Havertz then did well down the left side of the box, picking out Jesus in the middle of the goal. The Brazilian laid it off to Odegaard, with the goal at his mercy, but his side-footed shot into the bottom corner was well saved by Martinez.
As Arsenal looked to bring the ball forward from defence, Jesus ran into a Villa player expecting a free kick to be awarded. The referee waved play on and the hosts managed to work it to Watkins with a great shooting chance but Raya blocked his effort.
The flag then went up for offside to save the striker’s blushes but with the way the game is now, that decision could be for any moment since August. The replay showed that had he scored, a VAR review would have probably allowed the goal.
Early in the second half, Jesus made his way into the box before going to ground and throwing his arms in the air, demanding a penalty. Douglas Luiz did seem to kick the striker but whether it was enough to send him to the ground is highly debatable and VAR cleared the incident.
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By this stage of the game, Mikel Arteta who was in the stands due to receiving three yellow cards, was not looking very happy at all. It was like his doctor had told him he was allergic to Just For Men and recommended not using any such products moving forward.
Saka then swung in a corner which Martinez fumbled onto Watkins. The ball hit the Villa striker, clipped the post, before Carlos was there to hack the ball clear once again. Aston Villa were lucky to not concede what would have been quite the comedic goal.
Zinchenko then scooped the ball over the Villa defence into the path of Havertz. He picked out Odegaard in the box with the whole goal gaping. Somehow, the Norwegian scuffed his shot wide when it seemed certain he would score.
Arsenal were getting a lot of joy from balls in behind the Aston Villa high defensive line. Saka sprinted onto Rice’s pass, to take it around Martinez and roll it into the back of the net. Again the assistant referee then raised his flag for offside, which the replay showed was the correct decision.
Diaby did well down the right for the hosts and picked out Watkins in the box. The striker hit his effort first time but it was straight at Raya who gathered the ball at the second time of asking in quite an unconvincing save.
The Gunners thought they had found their equaliser in time added on. Odegaard swung it into the back post where a melee of players challenged for it. The ball dropped to Havertz who slotted it into the net, turning away to celebrate with the fans.
As soon as he did, the referee blew his whistle and disallowed it for handball. VAR reviewed it and agreed with the onfield decision. Watching replays from multiple angles showed that the German did touch it with his hand about two or three times.
Aston Villa held on to make it a momentous week for Unai Emery’s side with wins over Man City and Arsenal. They now sit comfortably third in the table, only two points off leaders Liverpool. Mikel Arteta cut a disappointed figure after the game but avoided commenting on any decisions.
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