Aston Villa closed the gap at the top of the Premier League table as Emi Buendia struck deep into stoppage time to earn Unai Emery’s side a statement 2-1 victory
Dejected Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta pointed to his side’s inability to clear the ball, seconds before Aston Villa’s stunning winner. The Gunners missed the chance to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League table as they were beaten 2-1 in dramatic fashion at Villa Park.
The hosts had taken the lead in the first half through Matty Cash, before Leandro Trossard got Arsenal back in the game with his latest goal from the bench. But rather than build on that equaliser, the hosts piled on the pressure, with Emi Buendia lifting the ball into the net in the final minute of added-on time.
That sparked wild scenes of celebration, with Unai Emery’s men now just three points off the top and firmly in the title picture. And Arteta bemoaned the fact his players failed to clear their lines following a long ball from Emi Martinez which sparked the scramble ultimately resulting in the winner.
“In the second half we started really well,” he told TNT Sports. “We were very dominant, but then the same issues returned. We allowed certain opponents too much space. We gave the ball away ourselves, to the point where it could have cost us the game, before it actually did.
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“Goal kick long, second ball…clear the ball. Individual actions and a lot of chaos in the box and you end up losing it. So it’s painful.”
It’s just the second time Arsenal have been beaten all season and ends a long unbeaten run in all competitions which stretched back to their defeat to Liverpool in August.
Arteta added: “Every week will be like this. We are 18 games unbeaten and the margins are so small. We have to focus on ourselves and certain standards today – individual levels weren’t there in some cases. We have to go again.
“Consistency levels with everything that happened to us has been incredible. I have no arguments to think otherwise.”
Meanwhile, Emery was left delighted as Villa, who started the season in desperately poor form, recorded their seventh straight win in all competitions. He said: “So happy. We finished this week really playing like we need to – competing, demanding ourselves, adapting to the opponent and playing with personality.
“Dominating sometimes and getting in the box, being intense and aggressive when we needed . Villa Park is special, the supporters transmit the energy to us. How they responded is fantastic.
“We are going to focus game by game. We know our only way is if we are trying to focus on each competition. Europa League we want to play well but Premier League is our first priority. We have to respond like we did it today.”
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