Leandro Trossard came off the bench to inspire Arsenal to a 2-0 win over Aston Villa – a major boost for the Gunners after suffering two Premier League defeats against the Villans last term.
There was a delay to kick-off due to communication issues for the match officials, and there were further pauses in play so that Amadou Onana and Matty Cash could receive treatment, with the latter being forced off just 14 minutes into proceedings.
The Gunners almost made the most of their temporary man advantage between the right-back going off and being replaced by Kosta Nedeljković, as Bukayo Saka forced Emiliano Martínez into action with a curling effort that was impressively tipped behind.
With the match continuing to stop and start, Gabriel Magalhães lost his concentration and was pickpocketed by Leon Bailey near the edge of his own box, but was let off as Ollie Watkins uncharacteristically dragged his shot wide.
Arsenal remained patient in their play despite the scare and that approach eventually resulted in a big chance in the 39th minute. Declan Rice slipped the ball through for Gabriel Martinelli to cut it back for Kai Havertz, but the German couldn’t divert it on target.
The teams were equally methodical in their approach after the break before the hosts came alive in the 54th minute.
Onana latched onto Morgan Rogers’ pass to hit a shot that deflected off Gabriel, over David Raya and onto the crossbar before the goalkeeper got up remarkably to deny Watkins’ point-blank follow-up.
There was another nervous moment for the visitors when Ezri Konsa’s knockdown narrowly evaded Jhon Durán and the far post. But soon after – within two minutes of emerging from the bench – Trossard guided his shot into the bottom corner after Rogers’ tackle diverted the ball towards him.
The Gunners doubled their lead 10 minutes later when Saka laid the ball off for Thomas Partey to hit a first-time shot that snuck through Martínez’s clutches. That put the contest to bed, ensuring that Arsenal are able to watch the UEFA Champions League group phase draw on Thursday with two PL wins and clean sheets to their name this term.
They also extended their unbeaten run on the road to 10 league matches while inflicting Villa’s first defeat of the campaign.
