Who: Arsenal vs Aston Villa
What: English Premier League
Where: Emirates Stadium, London, UK
When: Tuesday at 8:15pm (20:15 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 17:00 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream.
Despite failing to win any of their opening six matches of the season, Aston Villa’s scintillating recent form has made them genuine title contenders as they visit league leaders Arsenal.
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Eight Premier League wins in a row – and 11 in all competitions, their longest streak of victories since 1914 – have taken Unai Emery’s men to within three points of the Gunners at the top of the table.
Emery will also be eager to win at his old employer Arsenal, where he was sacked in 2019, just over a year after succeeding Arsene Wenger as manager.
Arsenal were the early league pacesetters this season, and at one stage had a six-point lead at the summit, but they have looked less convincing in recent weeks and lost 2-1 to Villa in Birmingham earlier in December after conceding a last-gasp goal.
The Gunners were briefly deposed at the top of the league by Manchester City at the weekend, but regained top spot with a battling 2-1 home win over Brighton, while Villa came from behind to record an impressive 2-1 win away at Chelsea.
‘We are competing very well’
Emery returns to the scene of one of his few managerial failures on Tuesday, aiming to land a huge blow to former club Arsenal’s ambitions of a first Premier League title for 22 years.
The Spaniard has awoken a sleeping giant in Villa, transforming the club from battling relegation to contending for their first league title since 1981.
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“We are competing very well. We are third in the league behind Arsenal and Manchester City. Wow,” said Emery after he masterminded a second-half turnaround at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
Villa were being outclassed by the Blues and trailed 1-0 until a triple substitution on the hour mark changed the game.
Ollie Watkins came off the bench to score twice and hailed his manager’s change of system as “tactical genius” afterwards.
Emery enjoys strong record against Arsenal
Few believe Villa will still be able to last the course against the far greater riches and squad depth of Arsenal and City over the course of 20 more games. But a title challenge is just the next step on an upward trajectory since Emery took charge three years ago.
After a 13-year absence from Europe, including a three-year spell in the second-tier championship, the Villains have qualified for continental competition for the past three seasons.
Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) were on the ropes at Villa Park in April but escaped to win a thrilling Champions League quarterfinal 5-4 on aggregate before going on to win the competition for the first time.
Meanwhile, Emery has lost just twice in 10 meetings against Arsenal during spells at PSG, Villarreal and Villa, including a 2-0 win at the Emirates in April 2024 that ultimately cost Mikel Arteta’s men the title.
Even Emery’s ill-fated 18 months in north London were far from disastrous. The 54-year-old inherited a club in decline during Wenger’s final years but only narrowly missed out on Champions League qualification in his sole full season in charge and reached the Europa League final.
‘Everyone ready to do whatever it takes’
Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard believes Declan Rice’s “unbelievable” performance as an emergency right-back against Brighton shows the Gunners are “ready to do whatever it takes” to win the Premier League.
The absence of Jurrien Timber and Ben White saw Rice – one of the standout midfielders in the league so far this term – fill in at full-back, and he could be required to play there again on Tuesday.
“To play right-back, probably [for] the first time in his life, and then do it the way he did it today was unbelievable, so a really, really good performance from him,” Odegaard said of Rice.
“And that’s just our team. Everyone is ready to do whatever it takes, and [Rice’s performance] was another good example of that.”
Gunners handling injuries in ‘incredible way’
When Odegaard drilled in a 14th-minute opener for Arsenal against Brighton, and Georginio Rutter’s own goal from a Rice corner made it 2-0 shortly after the break, it should have been a routine three points for the hosts.
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But Diego Gomez’s reply for Brighton changed the complexion of the contest, and there was relief at the final whistle as Arsenal cleared another obstacle in the title chase.
“The knock-on effect of winning is incredibly powerful,” Arteta said of a victory that should have been easier.
“It should never be 2-1, but that’s the Premier League.
“What I like is that we have a lot of issues, we’re dealing with it in an incredible way; yesterday we lost Jurrien [Timber], today we lost [Riccardo] Calafiori in the warm-up. Declan [Rice] has to play as a full-back, and you see the performance that he put in, so that’s the spirit and that’s how much our players want it.”
The two clubs first locked horns 120 years ago and have now played 206 times, with the Gunners winning 88 of those games, Aston Villa winning 72, and 46 ending as draws.
Arsenal have lost three of their last five games against Villa, picking up just four points in the process, and last recorded a win over Villa in August 2024 – a 2-0 away victory.
While the Gunners have won nine of their last 10 Premier League home games, Villa head to London having taken four points from their last two trips to the Emirates – a 2-0 win in April 2024 and a 2-2 draw in January.
Arsenal’s team news
Arteta will hope that Timber can pass a late fitness test. If he is available again, Rice would move back into his midfield role.
Calafiori remains a major doubt after withdrawing from the warm-up against Brighton and being replaced at left-back by Myles Lewis-Skelly.
However, in what would be a major boost for the Gunners, key centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes has recovered from an adductor injury and could start for the first time since November.
Predicted lineup:
Raya (goalkeeper); Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly; Zubimendi, Rice, Odegaard; Saka, Gyokeres, Eze
Aston Villa’s team news
Right-back Matty Cash and defensive midfielder Boubacar Kamara are suspended after accumulating bookings, with Amadou Onana and Lamare Bogarde set to come in as replacements.
Defenders Tyrone Mings and Pau Torres and midfielder Ross Barkley remain ruled out with injuries, while Ivory Coast forward Evann Guessand is playing at the Africa Cup of Nations.
After coming off the bench to score a brace against Chelsea, Watkins is set to start up front in place of Donyell Malen.
Predicted lineup:
Martinez (goalkeeper); Bogarde, Konsa, Lindelof, Maatsen; Onana, Tielemans; McGinn, Buendia, Rogers; Watkins