Premier League: Emery Awaits as Arsenal’s Title Hopes in Trouble

Aston Villa vs Arsenal

Arsenal’s Premier League title hopes are in peril. A midweek defeat to title rivals Manchester City has knocked the Gunners off top spot as their recent run of disappointing results continues.

And now, Arsenal will be desperate to get all three points when they pay a visit to old boss Unai Emery and his Aston Villa side, who are also eager to get back to winning ways after suffering back-to-back defeats.

Talking Points

Aston Villa in the midst of rough patch

Aston Villa have hit their first rough patch under Unai Emery. The Villans have lost back-to-back games after going down 4-2 at home to Leicester and 3-1 away to Manchester City.

Those subpar Premier League 2023 results come on the heels of a four-game unbeaten run to start the new year, with three wins and a draw.

While there is no shame in losing at City, Emery will be particularly disappointed at how his defence performed at home against Leceister as Villa conceded four league goals for the first time under the Spaniard.

Calum Chambers, who got the start at centre-back in place of the injured Tyrone Mings, committed an error that directly led to a City goal. But Mings’ injury doesn’t appear to be too serious and he should be able to make it back to face Arsenal.

Meanwhile, Emery will be pleased with the form of Ollie Watkins. After a slow start to the season, the 27-year-old striker has rediscovered his best form and has scored in each of his last three appearances.

Although, Emery will be hoping for more production from the likes of Leon Bailey and Emi Buendia, who have both underwhelmed in recent games.

Arsenal’s title hopes hit a snag

Arsenal’s Premier League 2023 odds of claiming their first title in nearly 20 years have taken a massive hit in recent weeks.

After a shock 1-0 defeat away to Everton and a 1-1 home draw with Brentford saw their lead dwindle to just three points, the Gunners were knocked out of top spot in the table after a 3-1 defeat to reigning champions Manchester City.

The Gunners still have a slight advantage as they have a game in hand, but the pressure is now very much on Mikel Arteta’s side.

Arsenal’s defence remains second in the league with just 21 goals conceded, but they have kept a clean sheet just once in their last four games.

Takehiro Tomiyasu made a surprise start at right-back and committed a costly error which led to City’s opening goal. Ben White, who had started every Premier League match prior to the City clash, is almost certain to return to the right side of defence against Villa.

Meanwhile, defensive midfielder Thomas Partey missed the City match with a muscle injury and could be set for another spell on the sidelines. Jorginho got the start in place of Partey and will be the favourite to keep his place.

Arsenal’s loss to Everton at Goodison was just their second away defeat of the season. They still have by far the best away record in the Premier League this season with eight wins out of 11, with 20 goals scored and just seven conceded.

History

Arsenal and Aston Villa have met 55 times in the Premier League era, with the Gunners unsurprisingly getting the better of the Villans. Arsenal hold a commanding 30-11 advantage in terms of wins, with 14 draws.

After Villa reeled off three wins in a row against Arsenal, it’s the Gunners who currently have a three-game win streak going. They won their first meeting this season 2-1 at the Emirates thanks to goals from Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli.

Betting Tip

SBOTOP odds have Arsenal favoured at 1.84 to get the victory at Villa Park. The Villans are priced at 4.10, while a draw is 3.55.

After their recent stumbles, Arsenal will be desperate to get back on track against Aston Villa. It won’t be easy as Emery is more than capable of setting his Villa side up to frustrate superior opposition.

But Arteta’s Gunners should have enough weapons to get the better of Emery’s defensive gameplan en route to another away win.

 

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