• 2 days ago
Arsenal 2 Aston Villa 2 - Matt Maher analysis
Transcript
00:00Good evening from North London. Well, just when you're doubting whether Villa really can stay in the race for Champions League football this season, they provide another reminder of why you can't count them out.
00:16This result, 2-2 draw at Arsenal, their best away result of the season so far. Four points from two away matches in the space of four days after a run of five straight defeats on the road.
00:29Obviously that 1-0 win at Everton on Wednesday and tonight, 2-0 down after 55 minutes here at the Emirates Stadium. It looked like they were sliding to a rather limp defeat.
00:38They've been very passive and then a remarkable comeback. Two goals in the space of eight minutes from Uri Tielemans and Ollie Watkins and Villa take a point from Arsenal.
00:48Again, last season they won 2-0 here. Obviously this result didn't quite hit those heights but in some ways it was almost equally as satisfying. Villa showing loads of character to get back into the game.
01:01They trailed in the first half through Gabriel Martinelli's goal on 35 minutes. Up until that point, the game had felt very similar to the game here last season. Arsenal looking short of ideas and the goal really came from nowhere.
01:14Villa in the second half, you expected a reaction but they didn't get going in the second half of the first 10 minutes and found themselves 2-0 down when Kai Havert scored.
01:23Any Martínez perhaps could have done better. And then on the hour mark, Luca Dean who'd replaced Ian Martson off the bench. Martson, it's a rare Premier League start but demonstrating perhaps why he's better going forward than he's defending.
01:36He was partly culpable for the first goal. Dean came on, did a superb cross and Uri Tielemans, just as he did for Belgium against England, delivered a diving header. Villa were back in it.
01:47A minute later, Tielemans hits the post. You thought that might have been Villa's chance to get level but 68 minutes, Matty Cash with a cross, a left-footed cross.
01:59Ollie Watkins with a volleyed finish just when he was about to be brought off actually for John Duran. Unai Emery, whether Duran's presence on the touchline motivated Watkins, who knows.
02:14But a 10th league goal of the season for Ollie Watkins. He's now reached double figures in five consecutive Premier League seasons. There was some controversy at the end. Arsenal thought they'd won it. Mirko Mourinho's shot deflected off Kai Havert.
02:29VAR determined it came off Havert's hand. Villa survived. Mourinho then hit the post. Amy Martínez saved from Leandro Trossard.

Recommended