Arsenal’s hopes of catching PREMIER League leaders Liverpool were handed an emphatic blow on Saturday as they were held to a 2-2 draw with Aston Villa.
The Gunners were two goals ahead thanks to strikes from Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz, but a quickfire double from Youri Tielemans and Ollie Watkins turned the game on its head after the break and leaves Arsenal six points behind Liverpool, who also have a game in hand.
How the game unfolded
Martinelli caused a scare for the visitors early on with an acrobatic volley, as did a barrage of early Arsenal corners. It took a while for Villa to settle but David Raya was soon called on to deny a powerful Ian Maatsen shot from close range.
Arsenal did a good job of controlling possession in the first half, but their ongoing struggles with creating chances continued as Villa’s rigid back line comfortably repelled everything sent their way inside the first 30 minutes.
Ten minutes before the interval, Arsenal finally stepped things up. Leandro Trossard’s vicious cross was poked towards goal by Martinelli, who was allowed to run off in celebration when goal-line technology confirmed Emiliano Martinez’s desperate attempts to scramble the ball away had failed.
Trossard was the architect for Arsenal’s second shortly after the break. After cooking Matty Cash, his excellent cross was met with a smart volley from Havertz which fizzed off Martinez and into the back of the net in the blink of an eye to give the Gunners some breathing room.
Villa fired their way back into the game shortly after. Lucas Digne’s delightful cross from deep was met by the onrushing Tielemans, who headed beyond Raya to reignite the match as a contest, and the Belgian could have easily tied things up just seconds later when his controlled strike struck the outside of the post.
Villa sensed an opening and Watkins took it with 20 minutes to go. Cash redeemed himself with a brilliant cross of his own in towards the Villa striker, who crashed a volley off the underside of the bar to set up a fascinating finale.
It looked like Arsenal were about to snatch a late winner as Mikel Merino powered a deflected effort into the back of the net, but a quick VAR check revealed the ricochet came from Havertz’s arm and took the score back to 2-2.
Merino hit the post in stoppage time as Arsenal pushed for the winner they needed to keep pace with PREMIER League leaders Liverpool, while the electric Trossard sent a strike trickling agonisingly wide of Martinez’s goal, but there was to be no reward for Arsenal’s endeavour as they slipped six points behind Arne Slot’s side.
Check out the player ratings from Arsenal 2-2 Aston Villa here.
When Havertz wheeled away in celebration for Arsenal’s second goal, this one looked done and dusted. The Gunners looked comfortable and don’t have a reputation for throwing away leads on home soil.
Just how Arsenal allowed Villa to get back level will need examining. The visitors were offering nothing before the hour mark, when a series of smart crosses saw them pick through the PREMIER League’s meanest defence with relative ease.
It was against Villa last season that Arsenal’s PREMIER League title hopes fell apart. While it’s too early to make such comparisons this time around, there’s no denying this one will hurt Arteta.
There was cause for concern when the team sheet emerged and William Saliba was nowhere to be seen. The Frenchman is battling what Mikel Arteta claims is a minor injury, so it was Jurrien Timber who joined Gabriel at the heart of Arsenal’s defence.
Both Gabriel and Timber enjoyed some tidy individual moments up against Watkins, but as the clock ticked on, there was a sense of confusion among Arsenal’s back line. Two Villa crosses were allowed to drift beyond them as the Gunners handed the visitors a route back into the game.
There was a clear lack of a composed, physical presence like Saliba’s, and Arsenal were made to suffer without their rock at the back.
The loss of Bukayo Saka, followed by Gabriel Jesus’ ACL injury, has seen plenty of questions raised about those remaining in Arsenal’s forward line, with the main line of questioning being whether any of those still standing are genuinely capable of inspiring a title challenge.
Trossard clearly took that personally, delivering a brutally impactful showing which saw him torment Matty Cash from start to finish.
The Belgian’s devilish crosses were too much for Villa to deal with and he deservedly walked away with two impressive assists, and he came within inches of winning it for his side with a late strike that trickled marginally beyond Martinez’s far post.
