Emery does it again as Gunners blow chance to return to top spot

 

Arsenal 0 Aston Villa 2   
Premier League   
Sunday 14th April 2024  4.30 pm    

Ah well, the afternoon was going so well. Liverpool’s shock defeat at home to Palace opened the way for Arsenal to open a gap on one of their two rivals for the title. It ended with Manchester City benefitting the most on a day when all they had to do was sit in front of the TV and enjoy what transpired.

 

Villa have now done the double over Arsenal in the league this season, although their home win was less deserving and featured some far more controversial decisions from the referee. Yesterday, it was a fairly even game – the Gunners were on top in the first half, Villa had the better of things after the break.

 

Ultimately, it was a case of the home side not making the most of their early dominance. There were a good number of chances to score before Villa were allowed back into the game, the most clearcut being Trossard’s point blank shot that was foiled by Martinez’ foot. 

 

Unai Emery’s side made for obdurate opponents. Even in the first half they looked threatening on the break and when Gabriel’s intended pass to the left wing hit Zinchenko in the back, Olli Watkins was unlucky his shot against the post did not deflect into the goal. The warnings were there of how dangerous Villa might be, given the chance. 

 

There were too many frustrating offsides against Arsenal’s forwards, a reminder of the December game in which Villa’s offside trap was ruthless. When they did break through too many chances were wide of the mark, but for the most part the defending of Emery’s side was effective. You did feel a goal had to come, but it was one of those days.

 

Arteta had rotated a little from the starting eleven v Bayern. Zinchenko replaced Kiwior from the bench on Tuesday evening, and five days on, the Ukrainian started. Jorginho was dropped for Jesus, meaning Havertz and Rice both playing deeper than in the Champions League game. Trossard began instead of Martinelli. Hindsight says Jorginho might have done more to stem the flow, and yet he was on the pitch at the time Villa scored their pair of goals, so who is to say? The tempo of the team does seem different when the Italian international starts.

 

What changed after the interval was that the visitors were more comfortable getting numbers forward and increasing their territorial and possession numbers. They went toe to toe with Arteta’s players, finding the energy to do so in spite of playing on Thursday evening. Martinelli came on for Trossard and offered some brief spark, but for the most part there was less Gunners’ goal threat in the second half. It felt like Emery played the game the right way. Let Arsenal blow themselves out, preserve a bit of energy and then go for the win. 

 

As the clock wound down, Arteta tried to mix things up with more subs, but the impact was minimal. Tomiyasu replaced White. I assume White must have got a knock as, with Villa in the ascendant, it would have made more sense to replace Zinchenko, who had given the ball away leading to Tielemans hitting the woodwork. 

 

Villa scored twice in the last few minutes. David Raya did not cover himself in glory for the first goal, flapping one handed at a ball across the face of his goal that he should have gone all out to smother. It went past him for Leon Bailey to convert into the net from the angle. We didn’t have to wait long for the second, as Watkins was sent clear on the break, Smith Rowe unable to catch him in time and his finish past Raya well-placed.

 

The stands emptied out, in spite of there being eight minutes injury time, as the fans gave up. They weren’t wrong. There was no late rally from Arsenal, as Villa coped easily enough. It felt like a case of Emery outsmarting the apprentice once again. 

 

There is always talk of unexpected twists and turns in the title race. Liverpool’s dropping five points to Manchester United and Palace was certainly not expected. There was always a fear that Arsenal’s run-in was sufficiently challenging to trip them up, although not winning matches at the Emirates wasn’t considered as where things might come unstuck. Manchester City, but for the home draw against the Gunners, just roll on though – much as they have in seasons past. It’s difficult to imagine any side outscoring them in the six matches that remain. They haven’t lost a game in any competition for over four months, although in the league, they have at least drawn four matches in that time, three of those at home. 

 

It isn’t over, but Arsenal can’t really afford to drop any further points anytime soon. The fear now is a run of results akin to that which buried their title ambitions last season. In April 2023, they dropped nine points out of 15. This year they have six league matches in April, and two additional Champions League games. It’s a heavy load for a team that is still developing with a large number of relatively young heads. It’s a stronger group of players than a year ago, but there was no European diversion at this stage of the season.

 

The worry in the last two matches is that Arteta’s decision making might not be at its best. Were the team too gung-ho in the first half against Bayern? Should Zinchenko have started yesterday? Should Jorginho have been on the bench? The squad does not feel quite deep enough, but there are financial reasons for that, which will hopefully not remain the case with continued Champions League qualification. There is a discussion to be had about why Arteta’s teams often seem to go to pot in the month of April, ever since he’s been at the club. It can’t be coincidence. Why the fragility at this particular time every year (when the pressure is really on)?

 

We’ve seen some marvellous football this season, some performances which were worthy of winning the title. Yesterday wasn’t one of those, and on occasion, you have this type of game, but you just have to win it somehow. I often recall the 1-0 home win v Palace in Wenger’s first title season – Upson, Vernazza, Stephen Hughes and Luis Boa Morte were in the starting line-up and a disjointed Arsenal team secured the points in a highly forgettable game. But the result stays in the memory. Hard work, three points, job done, move on. 

 

The key to these kind of games is the defence doing its job. This season’s team were doing so well on that front, but conceding four goals in their last two matches is a concern. That needs to be addressed, and soon, with the game in Munich in two days’ time. A result there should boost confidence for next weekend’s visit to Wolves, because Arsenal need to get back to winning ways. If not, then the last week will be identified as the beginning of the end for the current campaign. This is where Mikel Arteta proves he has developed from experience. Let’s hope he has.

 

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