Arsenal chase tenth consecutive away game unbeaten in visit to Aston Villa
Aston Villa and Arsenal FC meet on Saturday 24 August at 17:30 (GMT+1) at Villa Park in an early Premier League top-of-the-table clash. Referee Michael Oliver will take charge of the match, with Peter Bankes serving as VAR official.
Aston Villa: Durán the match-winner against his former dream club
Aston Villa kicked off the season with a convincing 2-1 home victory over West Ham United. Debutant Amadou Onana opened the scoring after just four minutes, but Lucas Paquetá drew West Ham level from the penalty spot in the 37th minute. The decisive moment came in the 79th minute through substitute Jhon Durán, who scored against the very club he had come so close to joining this summer. That flying start has only fuelled Unai Emery's ambitions further: Villa finished fourth in the Premier League last season and claimed a double over Arsenal. Another victory against the Gunners would give Emery's side three consecutive home wins in this fixture, while simultaneously becoming only the fourth occasion in the club's history that Villa have won their opening two matches of a season. Striker Ollie Watkins is expected to lead the attack in Emery's 4-2-3-1. Long-term absentees Boubacar Kamara and Tyrone Mings remain sidelined, though goalkeeper Emi Martínez recently signed a new long-term contract keeping him at Villa Park until 2029.
Arsenal: nine away games unbeaten and a record number of wins at Villa
Arsenal travel to Birmingham on the back of a 2-0 opening-day victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers. Bukayo Saka was the standout performer for the Gunners, providing the assist for Kai Havertz's opening goal in the 25th minute before finding the net himself in the 74th minute with a fine left-footed strike from the edge of the penalty area. Mikel Arteta's side are now looking to make it two wins from two. They arrive with impressive away-day statistics to back them up: across their last nine Premier League away matches, Arsenal have remained unbeaten, recording eight wins and one draw, and keeping a clean sheet in seven of those nine outings. Villa Park has historically been fertile ground for Arsenal: the Gunners have won there fourteen times in the Premier League, matching the record for the most victories at any single away ground — a tally they share with Selhurst Park. Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Havertz are all expected to feature in attack in Arteta's 4-3-3. Takehiro Tomiyasu, Kieran Tierney and Fabio Vieira are all unavailable for this fixture.
Related
Source: Sportmonks
Comments
- Be the first to comment.