Arsenal underlined their status as title favourites with a stunning second half performance against Aston Villa on Tuesday night, much to Mikel Arteta’s approval.
The Gunners had lost to Unai Emery’s side earlier in the month, but delivered a statement second half performance to cruise to a 4-1 win in the reverse fixture, ending the visitors 11 match win streak.
The home side dominated the first half, but could not break through a strong Villa defence, while the visitors also had chances to find the breakthrough in a goalless first half.
“I’m so happy. We play every three days, and today we played an opponent that has won 11 games in a row”, Arteta said after the win.
“They are a superb team, very difficult to play against, and we knew that we were going to have periods throughout the game.
“We talked about emotionally how demanding it was going to be and we struggled in the first 10 minutes. Then we adjusted, got a bit more control. We didn’t manage to score and then in the second half we clicked.”
It was a completely different Arsenal side that came out in the second half and they scored twice in four minutes on their way to victory.
First, Gabriel Malgahaes marked his return to the team after injury with a header from Saka’s corner, before Odegaard threaded a brilliant pass to Zubimendi for the second.
Trossard added a third, the goal surviving a lengthy VAR check for offside in the buildup.
Gabriel Jesus then added gloss on the win with a first goal after 11 months on the sideline, before Ollie Watkins grabbed a consolation for Villa in stoppage-time.
“We competed for everything much better. The timing was better and the individual goals were fulfilled in an extraordinary way, and we were so efficient in everything that we did”, Arteta added.
“Unlike in the last few games where we had so many big situations, today we were very prolific and accurate to make the difference.”
Arsenal increase their gap at the top to five points and will now face Bournemouth in their first match of 2026 on Saturday.
Olakitan is a young writer with a strong passion for sports, having gained experience with IndyPress and Nimelssa Press. His enthusiasm for sports inspired him to cover events both within his school and beyond. With a deep understanding of the game and a refined skillset, he brings sports coverage to a broad, global audience in a way that’s engaging and accessible.
