In the West Midlands on Saturday evening, a familiar face awaits Arsenal as they face Aston Villa in a Premier League clash. The match pits current Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta against one of his predecessors, Unai Emery.
Both teams enter the match with three points after their opening games of the season. Aston Villa secured a 2-1 victory against West Ham United, while Arsenal defeated Wolverhampton Wanderers with a 2-0 win.
Interestingly, Colombian striker Jhon Duran, who was close to joining West Ham earlier in the transfer window, played a decisive role in Villa’s win, scoring the late goal that sealed the victory. Duran's celebration, pointing to the London Stadium turf, hinted at his commitment to Villa, despite earlier links to West Ham.
Villa's victory over West Ham snapped a four-game winless streak in the Premier League, and Emery's side is now on the brink of opening the season with back-to-back wins, a feat they have achieved only three times before.
Villa has been a strong force at home, scoring at least twice in their last eight matches at Villa Park, though their consistency in securing wins has wavered.
Arsenal, on the other hand, kicked off their 2024-25 campaign by hosting Wolverhampton. They extended their remarkable record of scoring against Wolves to 34 consecutive matches when Kai Havertz headed in a cross from Bukayo Saka.
Although Arsenal allowed Wolves to challenge them, a second Havertz-Saka connection in the second half led to Saka scoring the decisive goal, ensuring a 2-0 win.
This victory marked Arsenal's seventh consecutive Premier League win, continuing their impressive away form in 2024. The Gunners have collected 25 out of a possible 27 points in away games this year, keeping seven clean sheets and conceding just three goals.
However, Aston Villa poses a significant challenge. Last season, they were the only team to do the double over Arsenal, defeating them 1-0 at home and then shocking them with a 2-0 win at the Emirates. Emery, who knows Arsenal well from his time as their manager, seems to have a knack for getting the better of his former club.
INJURIES & SUSPENSIONS
With eight minutes left in Villa’s match against West Ham, right-back Matty Cash was subbed off after seemingly taking a knock to the top of his leg. However, Emery didn’t mention any injury concerns for him after the game.
Still, Villa has options if Cash isn’t fit to play. Backup right-back Kosta Nedeljkovic is ready to step in, but Emery might prefer to lean on experience by shifting Ezri Konsa to the right-back position, which would allow Diego Carlos despite rumors of a potential transfer to return to central defense.
Meanwhile, Boubacar Kamara and Tyrone Mings remain sidelined as they recover from serious knee injuries. Given Jhon Duran’s impressive stats averaging a goal every 103 minutes in the Premier League Emery might consider promoting the 20-year-old to the starting lineup.
In fact, only Erling Haaland, who scores every 85 minutes, has a better goal-per-minute ratio among current players with at least five Premier League goals.
Arsenal also had a late change in their game against Wolves when Declan Rice had to leave the field due to cramping. However, the midfielder is expected to be fit for the Villa clash.
Fabio Vieira, who’s been nursing a hip injury, might also be back in time for the trip, but defenders Kieran Tierney (hamstring) and Takehiro Tomiyasu (knee) are still weeks away from returning.
As for Kai Havertz, fresh off a goal and an assist against Wolves, he’ll be looking to break a personal streak of bad luck against Villa. Despite seven previous Premier League encounters, the former Chelsea striker has yet to score or assist in a match against them, making Villa his toughest opponent in the English top flight.
POSSIBLE LINE-UPS
Aston Villa possible starting lineup:
Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne; Bailey, Tielemans, Onana, McGinn; Watkins, Duran
Arsenal possible starting lineup:
Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Partey, Rice; Saka, Havertz, Martinelli
EXPERT PREDICTIONS
Aston Villa 2-2 Arsenal
Arteta’s team is generally reliable when it comes to keeping things solid at the back. But with Villa's Jhon Duran and Ollie Watkins posing serious threats up front, Saturday's match could very well end in a closely-fought draw.
