Aston Villa secured a battling 1-0 win over Arsenal on Saturday evening, with John McGinn’s first-half goal sealing all three points at Villa Park.
Given our efforts in midweek in the win over Manchester City, it was clear that fatigue was an issue in this game as we struggled to control and dictate proceedings in the way we usually do.
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That led to sloppy play and surrendering possession often and too easily, and so Villa had to show another side of us in this win as we dug in and showed real resilience and grit.
McGinn’s goal was certainly a passage of real quality though, and while Arsenal threatened throughout, we were able to stay firm and hold on for all three points to solidify our place in the top four.
Aston Villa player ratings vs Arsenal:
Emiliano Martinez, 8 – Commanded his box well from deliveries in and was quick off his line when needed. Made a couple of key saves as he often does, although his distribution wasn’t as accurate with Villa opting to go long and more direct.
Ezri Konsa, 8 – Another top display at right-back, as he had his hands full with Martinelli but stuck to his task well and applied pressure to limit the threat that he posed.
Diego Carlos, 8.5 – Crucial intervention off the line to protect our lead, while he was physically imposing throughout and kept our backline organised and disciplined when playing the offside trap.
Pau Torres, 8.5 – Solid defensively, as he showed real intelligence to make key blocks. A little less effective with his passing out from the back due to Arsenal’s high press and our game plan to go long, but was still the most composed player in that area.
Lucas Digne, 8 – Replaced in the second half as fatigue will be impacting him after a relentless run. Prior to that though, was disciplined and focused for the most part, albeit he did get caught out by Saka for one big chance early on.
Leon Bailey, 7 – Excellent work for the goal, as it was his play down the right side that set up McGinn’s winner. Took a knock in the first half and never really looked like he recovered before he was replaced at half-time.
Douglas Luiz, 7.5 – Less of an influence in this one as Arsenal clearly targeted him and Kamara off the ball to prevent us from building out with them. However, still battled hard to give us a foothold and protection in front of the backline, and his absence will be a blow at Brentford next weekend due to suspension.
Boubacar Kamara, 7.5 – Another positive shift as it was a similar situation for him and Luiz. Dug deep to give us a presence in midfield, but he was certainly struggling with tiredness before he was eventually replaced in the second half.
John McGinn, 9 – Another exceptional effort from the Villa captain. Took his goal really well and proved to be decisive, but his energy, relentless work ethic and desire were all key in this game as we weren’t at our best. A monster shift as he was racing around the pitch to the very end to ensure we held on to our lead for all three points.
Youri Tielemans, 7 – A clever display in terms of how he found pockets of space and used the ball to link things together. Worked hard to press off the ball too, but he was another who looked to be struggling with fatigue and was taken off in the second half.
Ollie Watkins, 7 – A difficult evening for him as he didn’t have the service to make a bigger impact. However, he continued to run the channels and give us an outlet to go long, and he did at times show good hold up play to link our attacks while battling with the Arsenal centre-halves in the air.
Substitutes:
Moussa Diaby, 6 – Didn’t really get into the game as we were defending for the most part and couldn’t utilise him when going more direct.
Jacob Ramsey, 7 – Important impact with his energy and freshness off the bench to give us a lift and more movement on and off the ball.
Matty Cash, 7 – Similar to Ramsey in that he used his fresh legs well to lessen the burden on others and he read play impressively to nip in and win possession back on several occasions.
Leander Dendoncker, 7 – Solid shift given the circumstances and his lack of football in recent months. Important presence off the ball, slightly wayward with his passing, but vital effort.
Alex Moreno, 6.5 – Again, provided fresh impetus off the bench and will now likely return to the Villa XI next week at Brentford with Digne suspended.