Arsenal failed to reclaim top spot in the Premier League after losing 1-0 to high-flying Aston Villa on Saturday evening.
Premier League
Result: Aston Villa 1-0 Arsenal
Date: 09 December 2023
Venue: Villa Park
The Gunners made just one change from the win over Luton Town on Tuesday, as Oleksandr Zinchenko came in for Jakub Kiwior while goalkeeper David Raya kept his spot in the side.
Villa got off to the perfect start when John McGinn opened the scoring after just seven minutes with a powerful finish after some good work by Leon Bailey in the build-up.
Mikel Arteta's men were left frustrated by the home side, as the likes of Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli were finding it tough to get any joy down the respective flanks.
The Gunners had their first real opening on 38 minutes when Martin Odegaard managed to carve out some space in the box but saw his strike saved by goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.
After a disappointing first half, the Gunners were a lot more livelier in the second and they nearly pulled themselves level but Diego Carlos was on hand to clear Bukayo Saka's effort off the line.
Arteta finally looked to his bench after 68 minutes as Martinelli, who had been very quiet, made way for Leandro Trossard who has been a key figure off the bench in recent weeks.
The away side thought they had found the equaliser in the 90th minute when Kai Havertz bundled the ball home at the far post but after a VAR review, the strike was ruled out for a handball on the German midfielder.
Villa were able to see out the closing stages of the second half to claim a win over Arsenal, just days after they defeated Manchester City.
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