Mikel Arteta was full of praise for Aston Villa after Arsenal were forced to battle hard to secure a narrow 1-0 victory at Villa Park, with Bukayo Saka’s second-half strike settling the contest.
The reigning champions were made to work for the points against a stubborn Villa side that showed far more resilience than in their opening-weekend capitulation at Brighton. The hosts started brightly and came closest to breaking the deadlock when Emiliano Buendía crashed a fierce long-range effort against David Raya’s crossbar just 12 minutes in.
Arsenal dominated possession but found it difficult to break down a well-organised Villa defence. The visitors restricted the Gunners to few clear-cut chances, with their defensive organisation and transition ability making life uncomfortable for the champions throughout the first half.
Arsenal thought they had won a penalty early in the second half when Ian Maatsen brought down Saka, but VAR review showed the foul occurred outside the box. The decision was downgraded to a free-kick, which Martin Ødegaard sent inches wide.
But it was one Villa player in particular who caught Arteta’s eye. Ross Barkley produced a sensational display in the heart of the park, giving Arsenal’s midfield a torrid time throughout the afternoon. The former Everton man created two chances, made eight passes into the final third and eight line-breaking passes, while also contributing defensively with three tackles and six recoveries. He won all four ground duels he attempted a perfect 100 per cent success rate.
Barkley was at the heart of Villa’s best moments. He found Ian Maatsen in acres of space with a pinpoint pass that almost led to an early opener, and also forced a shot on goal in the 68th minute. His energy and movement between the lines made him a constant thorn in Arsenal’s side, with Arteta acknowledging the difficulty Barkley posed.
“He gave us a real problem today,” Arteta said. “His movement between the lines, his physicality he made it very uncomfortable for us. I know how tough it is to win here. Every big team has struggled against them because they are so good.”
Saka was not to be denied. Just before the hour mark, substitute Eberechi Eze picked out Riccardo Calafiori’s run into the Villa area, and the defender’s low cross was poked in by Saka from close range for his second goal in as many games.
Arteta, celebrating his 250th Premier League match in charge of the Gunners, described the result as a “massive win.”
“Really happy. A massive win. A tough place to come and earn the three points. We deserved it,” Arteta told Sky Sports. “It was a great squad performance because when 11 wasn’t enough, the finishers came in and did a magnificent job to finish off the game.”
The Arsenal manager also revealed he used last season’s painful last-gasp defeat at Villa Park where Buendía scored a dramatic winner as motivation for his players.
“Last year we lost here in a really difficult way, with the last kick of the game. And that was still in the tummy,” Arteta reflected. “We are in the second game and it’s like, ‘we have to win this game!’ We know the level, we know how difficult it is for every team to earn points in this league, so we have to be really proud tonight.”
Villa manager Unai Emery, despite the defeat, chose to focus on the positives from his much-changed side, which included debutants Zion Suzuki in goal and Nicolas Jackson in attack.
“We’ve lost. We competed well. We are trying to rebuild the team but a lot of positive things after the result. How we compete defensively, with the ball. It was so equal, the match,” Emery said.
It was a surprise when Barkley was substituted for Alejandro Garnacho in the 78th minute. For Villa, the performance and particularly Barkley’s midfield masterclass will have given their supporters plenty of encouragement, even if they remain pointless after two games.
