Arsenal had the same fate as Man City. The Gunners collapsed when they visited Aston Villa and lost their throne at the top of the standings.
The 16th week of the 2023-2024 Premier League match between Aston Villa vs Arsenal at Villa Park, Sunday (10/12/2023) finished with a score of 1-0.
Arsenal, who came to Villa Park with the ambition to take back the top position occupied by Liverpool, had to go home without winning any points. The Gunners, nicknamed Arsenal, had the same fate as Man City, who lost 0-1 in the middle of last week when they visited Villa Park.
Arsenal’s defeat at Villa Park was confirmed by the home team captain John McGinn’s only goal in the seventh minute. McGinn’s goal came from a combination of neat and fluid exchanges of passes on the right side of Aston Villa’s attack. This attack scheme allowed Leon Bailey to pass, who was then able to send a cross towards McGinn. After taking one control, McGinn, who received the ball with his back to goal, made a neat finish with his left foot, as soon as he turned his body.
Arsenal strives to provide an instant response. They got a golden chance via Martin Odegaard’s efforts in the 39th minute. However, Aston Villa’s lead remained thanks to a neat save by the Argentine goalkeeper, Emiliano Martinez.
Arsenal were actually able to shake Aston Villa’s goal net in the 62nd minute, after Bukayo Saka successfully tackled Martinez. However, the goal was disallowed after a VAR review showed Saka had been caught offside.
Aston Villa’s goal shook again in the 90th minute. This time, Kai Havertz pushed the ball into the goal after being involved in a duel with Matty Cash.
Once again, Arsenal had to bite their fingers because the referee did not approve Havertz’s goal. VAR assessed that Havertz had a hand ball during the duel with Cash.
The Aston Villa vs Arsenal match ended with a score of 1-0. Thanks to this result, Aston Villa solidified their position in third place in the standings with 35 points.
On the other hand, Arsenal is stuck in second place with 36 points and must be willing to see Liverpool (37 points) instead occupy the top spot.
