Premier League: Aston Villa vs Arsenal live
Preview: Aston Villa vs Arsenal
Arsenal will travel to the West Midlands to face Unai Emery’s Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday at 4:30pm GMT. Both teams have secured three points from their first match, with Aston Villa narrowly defeating West Ham United 2-1 in their opener, while Mikel Arteta’s squad won 2-0 against Wolves.
Aston Villa experienced a thrilling opening day as Jhon Durán came off the bench to score a late winner, leading to a 2-1 victory against West Ham. The played a crucial role in helping Unai Emery’s team start their 2024/25 Premier League season on a high note. Now, they aim to achieve three consecutive league wins against Arsenal for only the third time, having previously done so in November 1993 and February 2021.
Given that Villa has lost only three of their last 26 home league matches (with 19 wins and 4 draws), it seems plausible for last season’s Champions League qualifiers to accomplish this, especially since they have scored 2 or more goals in each of their last five home games. However, the Villans have also conceded nine goals in their last four matches at Villa Park, making them vulnerable defensively.
Arsenal secured a comfortable 2-0 victory at the Emirates Stadium in their season opener. Goals from Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka propelled Mikel Arteta’s team to a strong start in their quest to win the Premier League title for the first time since the 2003/04 season. The Gunners come into this match unbeaten in their last nine away league games (winning 8 and drawing 1), showcasing an impressive run of form built on a solid defense. In seven of those matches, Arsenal managed to keep a clean sheet, and overall, they recorded 11 clean sheets on the road last season, the highest in the Premier League by a significant margin.
Head-to-head
Last season, Aston Villa was the sole team to secure a Premier League double against Arsenal, triumphing 1-0 at their home ground and then pulling off an unexpected 2-0 victory at the Emirates.
Prediction
Arsenal has achieved fourteen victories at Villa Park, which ties it for the most wins at any away Premier League location. Arteta’s squad is generally reliable in maintaining a strong defense, but with Duran and Ollie Watkins posing a significant offensive threat for Villa, we can foresee Saturday’s match resulting in a closely-fought draw.
