Sport nationOPINIONArsenal will not repeat same Man City mistake that cost them against Unai Emery and Aston Villa
Arsenal have seen how Aston Villa beat Manchester City and will not make the same mistake thanks to key midfield enforcers.
Mikel Arteta will not make the same mistake for Arsenal that Pep Guardiola did when facing Aston Villa with Man City.
Aston Villa did Arsenal a massive favour in Wednesday night’s 1-0 win over Manchester City but despite the scoreline matching the Gunners’ own win with the champions, there were stark differences in the performances. Where Arsenal decided to break up the City attacks and play industriously to stay in the game before taking their chance, Unai Emery’s side dominated City with chances and were not afraid to take advantage of the makeshift side Pep Guardiola had put together.
Villa were able to exploit the selection that Guardiola had chosen. There was a distinct lack of central midfield presence as Rico Lewis and John Stones with the aid of Manuel Akanji were expected to be the fulcrums of the middle third but it simply didn’t work. Villa’s orthodox central midfielders meant simple turnovers and space were at a premium.
Douglas Luiz, Boubacar Kamara and Youri Tielemans all worked to win the midfield battle and overrun the visitors. John McGinn was a great outlet on the left whilst Ollie Watkins and Leon Bailey offered escape routes and threats on the turnover.
Mikel Arteta will undoubtedly have watched the game with great interest to see where Manchester City went wrong on the day and try not to replicate their shortcomings. The Spaniard will of course not be on the touchline this weekend as he serves a pitch-side suspension after receiving his third yellow card in the late win at Luton Town.
The benefit the Gunners have is their midfield options certainly outweigh those of Man City. Rodri was suspended for the match and it showed.
Meanwhile, while Thomas Partey remains sidelined with yet another injury, Declan Rice has come into the side seamlessly and picked up Man of the Match awards like they are going out of fashion. The England international will be a vital part of the hopes that Arteta has of combating the Villa opposition.
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Kai Havertz’s form has significantly improved of late too, scoring three goals in his last three starts. Arteta also has the option of adding Jorginho into the middle should he want to add some more passing composure and added defensive cover.
The area which perhaps will be of most concern is the Arsenal left. With Takehiro Tomiyasu now out for what Arteta describes as “a while” and what football.london understands to be a period of four to six weeks the Japanese international will miss the festive period.
Oleksandr Zinchenko is certainly not a traditional left-back and far more so an additional central midfielder who must cover the defensive areas on the left with Gabriel Martinelli. It is the job of Gabriel Magalhaes to undertake the defensive work and he will face a serious challenge on Saturday.
Zinchenko of course scored at Villa in Arsenal’s 3-1 victory last season, they are the last Premier League team to do just that. A repeat of that scoreline will be far more respected this season with the home side having the chance to close the gap to the league leaders to just one point with a win.
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OPINIONArsenal will not repeat same Man City mistake that cost them against Unai Emery and Aston Villa
Arsenal have seen how Aston Villa beat Manchester City and will not make the same mistake thanks to key midfield enforcers.
Mikel Arteta will not make the same mistake for Arsenal that Pep Guardiola did when facing Aston Villa with Man City.
Aston Villa did Arsenal a massive favour in Wednesday night’s 1-0 win over Manchester City but despite the scoreline matching the Gunners’ own win with the champions, there were stark differences in the performances. Where Arsenal decided to break up the City attacks and play industriously to stay in the game before taking their chance, Unai Emery’s side dominated City with chances and were not afraid to take advantage of the makeshift side Pep Guardiola had put together.
Villa were able to exploit the selection that Guardiola had chosen. There was a distinct lack of central midfield presence as Rico Lewis and John Stones with the aid of Manuel Akanji were expected to be the fulcrums of the middle third but it simply didn’t work. Villa’s orthodox central midfielders meant simple turnovers and space were at a premium.
Douglas Luiz, Boubacar Kamara and Youri Tielemans all worked to win the midfield battle and overrun the visitors. John McGinn was a great outlet on the left whilst Ollie Watkins and Leon Bailey offered escape routes and threats on the turnover.
Mikel Arteta will undoubtedly have watched the game with great interest to see where Manchester City went wrong on the day and try not to replicate their shortcomings. The Spaniard will of course not be on the touchline this weekend as he serves a pitch-side suspension after receiving his third yellow card in the late win at Luton Town.
The benefit the Gunners have is their midfield options certainly outweigh those of Man City. Rodri was suspended for the match and it showed.
Meanwhile, while Thomas Partey remains sidelined with yet another injury, Declan Rice has come into the side seamlessly and picked up Man of the Match awards like they are going out of fashion. The England international will be a vital part of the hopes that Arteta has of combating the Villa opposition.
READ MORE: Invincible challenges Havertz critics and praises Arsenal for securing dream midfield successor
READ MORE: Arsenal news and transfers LIVE – Huge injury update, Kai Havertz message, Ivan Toney twist
Kai Havertz’s form has significantly improved of late too, scoring three goals in his last three starts. Arteta also has the option of adding Jorginho into the middle should he want to add some more passing composure and added defensive cover.
The area which perhaps will be of most concern is the Arsenal left. With Takehiro Tomiyasu now out for what Arteta describes as “a while” and what football.london understands to be a period of four to six weeks the Japanese international will miss the festive period.
Oleksandr Zinchenko is certainly not a traditional left-back and far more so an additional central midfielder who must cover the defensive areas on the left with Gabriel Martinelli. It is the job of Gabriel Magalhaes to undertake the defensive work and he will face a serious challenge on Saturday.
Zinchenko of course scored at Villa in Arsenal’s 3-1 victory last season, they are the last Premier League team to do just that. A repeat of that scoreline will be far more respected this season with the home side having the chance to close the gap to the league leaders to just one point with a win.
football.london Arsenal WhatsApp channel
Want to keep up to date with the breaking and important Arsenal stories whilst on the move? Well now you can!
Click this link to follow the football.london Arsenal WhatsApp channel, where you’ll be kept up to date on the latest Gunners news wherever you are.
Just remember to turn on the notifications once you’ve followed, and you won’t miss a beat!
Amina Umar
Sport nation
