Whoever thought that Aston Villa, who finished fourth and had a great last season, could challenge Arsenal at Villa Park, probably hasn’t read or seen anything in the last two months. Unai Emery proved time and time again that he is an excellent coach who can turn good players into great ones, but this time his key players were picked by the ‘Big six’ teams and the replacements were not as near as good. On the other side tonight was the current champion, who took Villa’s best defender (Ezri Konsa) and some other great players on the market and simply looked better. Arsenal had an easy game against newcomers Coventry, but Villa is a much stronger opponent. Still, the quality was visible and the Gunners scored only one goal, but it was good enough for all three points: Aston Villa – Arsenal 0-1.It was not bad enough that the Villains were left without Konsa, Rodgers, Emiliano Martinez and Tielemans, but their newest acquisition Manzambi got injured. Along with suspended Gomes and long term injured Onana, Emery was basically without three starters in midfield. On top of that, instead of Ollie Watkins (went to Saudi Arabia) came Nicolas Jackson and when the substitutes came in, they were all Manchester United flops like Wan Bissaka and Garnacho. This team could simply not defeat Arsenal. They played much better than against Brighton and the Gunners didn’t create as much chances as they had against Coventry, but when you play 98 minutes of football and don’t have a shot on target, everything is clear.5 – Riccardo Calafiori's last five Premier League goal involvements for Arsenal:MD1 in 2025-26 – goal vs Man UtdMD2 in 2025-26 – two assists vs LeedsMD1 in 2026-27 – assist vs CoventryMD2 in 2026-27 – assist vs Aston VillaRepeat. pic.twitter.com/EJ3xtVB27H— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 31, 2026 The Arsenal boss took charge of his 250th Premier League game for the club, making him only the 10th manager in Premier League history to reach 250 games at one club. Tonight his players gave him his 151st Premier League victory and he became the fifth-fastest manager in competition history to reach that landmark. The Gunners didn’t create much chances but as all great teams do, used their best one and won. On the other side, Emery must try to find another singing (if possible) and try to wake up his team before a trip to Hull.Chelsea get a proper keeper for the first time since 2018The first half was quite poor in terms of chances. We saw none of them and both teams made only seven shots, none of which went on target. If we had to name some of the opportunities, Bendia shook the bar in the 12th minute, but if that ball went into the net, the goal would have been denied, as Tzolis was fouled during the buld-up. Havertz took a real bad shot in a good situation, but he was in offside position anyway. Villa had only one chance when Jackson made a great pass from the right in the 43rd minute, but Hemmings was just a meter short from slamming it into the goal. During the first 45 minutes, Arsenal made 12 crosses, more than they put in at home to Coventry, but Unai Emery’s side were disciplined and concentrated in defense.Goodbye Julian, Jesus is Barca's new strikerFirst crack in Villa’s defense happened in the 54th minute when Maatsen brought down Saka's near the penalty area. After a few seconds pause, the referee pointed at the spot, only to see VAR deny him. A free kick was awarded instead and Odegaard nearly scored. But Saka continued to be a threat and after a great pass from Calafiori in the 59th minute, the England international scored for an Arsenal lead. Havertz again had a good chance, but just like in the first half, even if he scored, it would have been disallowed due to an offside. Aston Villa players tried their best, but forwards like Garnacho and Abraham were not match for Arsenal’s defenders.PREMIER LEAGUE – MATCHDAY 2FridayCrystal Palace – Manchester City 1-4 (0-1)/Donnarumma 56 og – Haaland 17, 84, Cherki 54, 59/SaturdayLiverpool – Nottingham Forest 2-2 (0-1)/Isak 60, Munoz 82 – Ndoye 24, Gibbs-White 70 pen/Bournemouth – Everton 1-1 (1-0)/Scott 41 – Tarkowski 90+1/Coventry – Hull 0-1 (0-0)/Millar 82/Tottenham – Newcastle 0-2 (0-0)/Elanga 62, Wissa 72/SundayChelsea – Brighton 4-3 (3-1)/Lavia 4, Neto 14, Pedro 32, Palmer 74 – Yalcouye 35, Pedro 63 og, Gross 90+6/Leeds – Brentford 1-1 (0-1)/Calvert-Lewin 79 – Schade 41/Sunderland – Fulham 1-0 (0-0)/Isidor 75/Manchester United – Ipswich Town 5-2 (1-1)/Fernandes 40, 61 pen, 68, Greaves 56 og, Mbeumo 82 – Davis 29, Akpom 90+1/MondayAston Villa – Arsenal 0-1 (0-0)/Saka 59/
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