MIKEL ARTETA BLAMES FAILURE TO CLEAR BALL FOR ASTON VILLA'S LATE GOAL
Unai Emery's Aston Villa secured a huge 2-1 win over Arsenal, fueling title talk. Arteta slams his team's inability to clear the ball before the late winner.
A frustrated Mikel Arteta, Arsenal's manager, pointed to his team's failure to clear the ball right before Aston Villa scored a late, surprising goal. The Gunners missed their chance to widen their lead in the Premier League, losing 2-1 in a dramatic match at Villa Park.
Matty Cash put the home team ahead in the first half, but Leandro Trossard equalised after coming off the bench. Instead of building on that, the home side put on the pressure, with Emi Buendia scoring the winning goal in added time.
The goal set off huge celebrations, as Unai Emery's team is now only three points from the top, very much in the title conversation. Arteta was upset that his players didn't clear the ball after a long pass from Emi Martinez led to the scramble that resulted in the winning goal.
"We started the second half really well," he told TNT Sports. We were very much in charge, but then we had the same old problems. We gave the other team too much space. We gave the ball away, which almost cost us the game before it did.
Long goal kick, second ball...just clear it. Individual mistakes and too much going on in the box, and we end up losing. It hurts.
This is only Arsenal's second loss of the season, ending their long run without a loss in all competitions since they lost to Liverpool in August.
Arteta added, "Every game will be tough." We've gone 18 games without losing, and the margins are very small. We need to focus on ourselves, and some of our usual standards weren't there today. We need to get back to it.
Our consistency has been amazing, considering everything that's happened to us. I have no reason to think otherwise.
Meanwhile, Emery was thrilled as Villa, who had a bad start to the season, secured their seventh straight win in all competitions. He said, “I’m so happy. We played this week the way we needed to—competing, pushing ourselves, adjusting to the other team, and playing with confidence.
We were in charge at times and got into the box, being intense and aggressive when we needed to. Villa Park is special, and the fans give us energy. Their response was fantastic.
“We're going to take it one game at a time. We know we need to focus on each competition. We want to do well in the Europa League, but the Premier League is our main focus. We need to respond like we did today.”
STATEMENT WIN: NONI MADUEKE SILENCES CRITICS WITH DOUBLE AS ARSENAL MAKES HISTORY
Noni Madueke, facing summer criticism, scored a brilliant double as Arsenal secured a historic sixth straight UCL win. Martinelli also set a major club record.
Arsenal and Gabriel Martinelli had a night to remember, but Noni Madueke might have been the happiest. After facing some online backlash for moving from Chelsea to Arsenal in the summer, Madueke, making a rare start on the right while Bukayo Saka rested, scored a super goal and then another in the second half, helping Arsenal win comfortably.
Arsenal is now only the fifth English squad to win their first six Champions League or European Cup games. They are close to making it to the last 16; they just need one more point.
Martinelli also had a great moment. His amazing curling shot means he's the first Arsenal player to score in five straight Champions League matches. Plus, Gabriel Jesus played for the first time in almost a year after recovering from a knee injury, so it was mostly the kind of result manager Mikel Arteta wanted after their loss to Aston Villa.
Without Declan Rice, who was sick, Arteta said he would change the starting lineup after the Villa loss. But there was further news before the game: Jurriën Timber was still hurt from the Villa match. This meant Christian Nørgaard and Piero Hincapié were the seventh different centre-back pairing for Arsenal this season. Riccardo Calafiori was only well enough to be on the bench, joining 16-year-old Marli Salmon, showing how thin Arsenal's squad is right now.
Considering the injuries, it wasn't the best time to play Club Brugge, who wanted to do well for their new coach, Ivan Leko, after Nicky Hayen was let go on Monday. Three losses in the last four games were the end for Hayen, who won the Belgian title last season. Leko, who also won the title in his first time as coach in 2018, now has the job of turning things around.
Even though Brugge played well in a 3-3 game against Barcelona last month, their defence has been shaky, and Arsenal showed they meant business early. Martin Ødegaard forced Dani van den Heuvel to make a save after just six minutes. Carlos Forbs, who used to play for Wolves, was a problem for Myles Lewis-Skelly, but Lewis-Skelly managed to get forward and saw his shot go off Hincapié and hit the post. Then, Madueke got the ball in Brugge's half and made a great move past his defender. He got past two more defenders and then fired an unstoppable shot that went in off the crossbar.
That goal could have won any game, but Brugge was still dangerous, especially with Forbs. Raya saved a shot from Forbs, and Aleksandar Stankovic almost scored from far away. Brugge was getting more confident. Christos Tzolis found some space in the box just before halftime, but Raya saw what he was planning. Then, Raya made another save to stop Stankovic.
Van den Heuvel had stopped Madueke from scoring again at the end of the first half, but Madueke got his second goal soon after halftime. Martín Zubimendi sent in a great cross from the left, and Madueke was there to knock it in. Not long after, Martinelli made his own history, cutting in from the left and scoring an amazing curling shot to make it 3-0.
Jesus almost scored in his return, but his shot hit the crossbar. Salmon, who played well with Max Dowman for Arsenal's Under-18s last season, also played his first Champions League game for the final few minutes and looked good as Arsenal moved closer to winning a trophy.
NEW FRONT THREE: MADUEKE, GYOKERES SET TO SHINE IN UCL ROTATION GAME.
After their unbeaten run ended, Arsenal will rotate heavily for the Club Brugge UCL clash. Lewis-Skelly and Nwaneri are tipped to start as key players rest.
Arsenal heads to Club Brugge for Wednesday's Champions League game after their 18-game unbeaten run ended with a tough 2-1 loss to Aston Villa last weekend.
Now, the team's focus is on the Champions League, where they're set to play Club Brugge at the Jan Breydel Stadium.
With the busy schedule lately, manager Mikel Arteta will likely make at least six changes to the starting lineup.
Players like Declan Rice, Martin Zubimendi, and Bukayo Saka could get a rest on the bench.
Arsenal currently leads its Champions League group with 15 points, three ahead of the other teams.
This game is a good chance for Arteta to switch things up and keep important players fresh for what’s ahead.
Here are changes Mikel Arteta might make:
Myles Lewis-Skelly at left-back
Riccardo Calafiori is out for Saturday’s game against Wolverhampton Wanderers due to his fifth yellow card.
Myles Lewis-Skelly is likely to step in for Calafiori at left-back this weekend. We think he’ll also start against Club Brugge, as he’s been in the starting lineup for three of the last four European matches.
Reports say Calafiori was seen leaving Villa Park with a limp. Because of this, he might only come on as a substitute against Club Brugge if needed.
Christian Norgaard and & Ethan Nwaneri in midfield
Declan Rice was a defensive machine against Villa, making 21 important plays. He looked tired after the defeat and needed a break.
He’s been a regular for Arsenal in every competition and for England too. This seems like the right time to give him a game off.
Likewise, Martin Zubimendi and Martin Odegaard could also use some rest. Odegaard just came back from his third injury this season, so he might start on the bench.
Christian Norgaard could take Zubimendi's spot in the number six role. Mikel Merino might move to central midfield, with Ethan Nwaneri playing as the attacking midfielder.
New-look front three
The front three could look different against the Belgian side. Saka might start on the bench, giving Noni Madueke a chance on the right wing.
The former Chelsea player scored his first Arsenal goal in the 3-1 win over Bayern Munich.
Viktor Gyokeres is in line to start for the first time in over a month after three substitute appearances. He’s eager to impress, especially since Merino has been the preferred choice upfront recently.
Eberechi Eze had a tough game on Saturday, and his poor defending played a part in Villa’s first goal. He was taken off at halftime along with Merino.
Eze could also start on the bench on Wednesday as part of the rotation. Gabriel Martinelli could get the nod on the left wing over Leandro Trossard, who doesn’t seem to be fully fit.
Despite being a substitute, Trossard was taken off in the 86th minute because of a calf issue.
It’s unlikely the 31-year-old will be risked from the start against Club Brugge. Martinelli has been impressive in the Champions League this season, scoring in each of his four games.
Elsewhere, David Raya, Ben White, Jurrien Timber, and Piero Hincapie are likely to keep their places in the lineup.
Gabriel Magalhaes, Cristhian Mosquera, and Kai Havertz are out with injuries until next year. It’s also uncertain if William Saliba will be ready to return on Wednesday night.