Arsenal’s hopes of meeting Premier League leaders Liverpool were dealt a major blow with a 2-2 draw against Aston Villa on Saturday.
The Gunners were two goals ahead thanks to goals from Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz, but a brace from Youri Tielemans and Ollie Watkins turned the game on its head after the break and left Arsenal six points behind Liverpool, also with a game in hand has itself.
How the game developed
Martinelli scared the visitors early with an acrobatic volley, as did a series of early Arsenal corners. Villa took a while to calm down but soon David Raya had to parry Ian Maatsen’s powerful shot from close range.
Arsenal did well to control possession in the first half, but their continued difficulties in creating chances continued as Villa’s sturdy defense effortlessly repelled everything that came its way within the first 30 minutes.
Ten minutes before half-time, Arsenal finally gained momentum. Leandro Trossard’s vicious cross was directed towards goal by Martinelli, who was allowed to run away in celebration as goal-line technology confirmed that Emiliano Martinez’s desperate attempts to get the ball away had failed.
Trossard was the architect of Arsenal’s second shot shortly after the break. After beating Matty Cash, his excellent cross was met by Havertz with a clever volley that shot past Martinez and into the net in an instant, giving the Gunners some breathing room.
Shortly afterwards, Villa fought their way back into the game. Lucas Digne’s superb cross from distance was countered by the onrushing Tielemans, who headed past Raya to get the game back on track, and the Belgian could easily have equalized just seconds later when his controlled shot Hit the outside of the post.
Villa sensed an opportunity and Watkins took it with 20 minutes left. Cash retaliated with a brilliant cross towards the Villa striker, who fired a volley off the underside of the crossbar, making for a mesmerizing finish.
It looked like Arsenal were on the verge of a late winner when Mikel Merino fired a deflected shot into the net, but a quick VAR check revealed the rebound came from Havertz’s arm and the score went back to 2-2.
Merino hit the post in stoppage time as Arsenal pushed for victory to keep pace with Premier League leaders Liverpool, while the electrifying Trossard sent a shot agonizingly past Martinez’s goal, but Arsenal’s efforts were not to be rewarded with six points behind Arne Slot’s team.
Check out Arsenal 2-2 Aston Villa player ratings here.
When Havertz turned away in celebration of Arsenal’s second goal, that goal looked done and dusted. The Gunners looked comfortable and do not have a reputation for throwing away leads on home soil.
What needs to be examined is how Arsenal allowed Villa to equalize. The visitors had nothing to offer an hour ago when a series of clever crosses saw them break through the Premier League’s weakest defense with relative ease.
Last season, Arsenal’s Premier League title hopes collapsed against Villa. Although it is too early to make such comparisons this time, there is no denying that this comparison will hurt Arteta.
There was cause for concern when the team list appeared and William Saliba was nowhere to be seen. The Frenchman is battling what Mikel Arteta says is a minor injury, so it was Jurrien Timber who joined Gabriel at the heart of the Arsenal defense.
Both Gabriel and Timber enjoyed some great individual moments against Watkins, but as time went on there was a sense of disarray in Arsenal’s defense. Two Villa crosses were allowed to go over them as the Gunners offered the visitors a route back into the game.
There was clearly a lack of a composed, physical presence like Saliba’s, and Arsenal suffered without their strong defence.
The loss of Bukayo Saka, followed by Gabriel Jesus’ cruciate ligament injury, has raised many questions about those remaining in Arsenal’s forward line, with the main question being whether any of those remaining are truly capable of sparking a title challenge.
Trossard obviously took this personally and delivered a brutally impressive performance, tormenting Matty Cash from start to finish.
The Belgian’s vicious crosses were too much for Villa and he deservedly walked away with two impressive assists, and with a late shot that went just past Martinez’s far post, he was inches away from victory for his team .