John McGinn sinks Arsenal to deliver another statement win for Aston Villa

How do you top reducing the kings to pawns? It was a question on the lips of the Aston Villa supporters basking in these rather heady days and a conundrum for Unai Emery, their almost untouchable manager, to solve. The simple answer is a club-record 15th straight home league victory, one that came against the erstwhile leaders, Arsenal. John McGinn’s early strike was sufficient to move Villa – who survived a late VAR check when Arsenal had a goal ruled out for handball against Kai Havertz – to within two points of the summit and one behind Arsenal. Perhaps Villa really are bona fide title contenders, as Pep Guardiola suggested in midweek.

For the second time in four days, Villa Park played host to a mouthwatering contest. After Villa’s evisceration of champions Manchester City in midweek, it was impossible not to wonder whether they would have the might – mentally as well as physically – to perform again at full tilt again.

As the Villa faithful serenaded Super John McGinn, Arteta looked on stony-faced from the directors’ box. Arteta, serving a touchline ban, sat along from Edu, the sporting director, next to Miguel Molina, his tactical assistant coach, and in front of Vinai Venkatesham, Arsenal’s chief executive officer, who is departing at the end of the season. Arteta’s expression would be understandable at the best of times but perhaps the fact that Villa had not lost any of the past 20 games in which they opened the scoring also entered his thinking. Emery’s side had won their past nine in a row after netting first. Arteta may have been absent but Emery, whom Arteta replaced after his fellow Basque’s unhappy and sapping 18-month spell, was choreographing another compelling Villa display.

The outlook was suddenly rather ominous for Arsenal but, unlike Pep Guardiola’s side on Wednesday, they at least put Emiliano Martínez’s goal under a sustained period of pressure. Martínez, the former Arsenal goalkeeper who in October won the Yashin Trophy at the Ballon d’Or awards, saved smartly from Gabriel Jesus and Martin Ødegaard before the break. The Norwegian will feel he should have done better, too. Kai Havertz made in-roads down the left and he expertly the cut ball back for Jesus, whose effortless first touch both killed the pace on the ball and perfectly laid the ball on a plate for Ødegaard. But the Arsenal captain, who earlier skittled a shot against the side netting, could not get enough conviction on his strike and his shot was also arguably too close to the Villa goalkeeper. Villa were voracious and very much at it again.

Arsenal arrived on to the pitch a couple of minutes early for the second half, for which Moussa Diaby entered for Villa, replacing the injured Bailey. Arsenal had won six games on the bounce and had no desire to go under here. Their response was impressive and they fashioned several chances.

Ødegaard side-footed a first-time effort wide after Havertz drove into space in the left channel and Bukayo Saka, given his Arsenal debut by Emery five years ago, had a goal disallowed for offside. Villa almost gifted Arsenal an equaliser when Martínez’s pawed clearance from a Saka corner bounced off Ollie Watkins and against a post. Early in the second half Lucas Digne resorted to clinging on to the coat tail of Saka’s yellow shirt, earning himself a routine yellow card.

The notable flashpoint came in the 90th minute. Arteta could only agonise in the stand as the VAR, Michael Salisbury, reviewed Jarred Gillet’s decision to disallow the substitute Eddie Nketiah’s strike, after Havertz was penalised for handball under pressure from Matty Cash. Deep into five added minutes, Villa supporters greeted a throw-in on halfway akin to a goal. Arsenal, to their credit, did not relent but Villa held on to record another magnificent victory.