Defeat to Aston Villa, Arsenal's 18-match unbeaten streak ended

Aston Villa won a thrilling 2-1 victory with a goal in injury time, ending Arsenal's 18-match unbeaten streak and narrowing the gap between the two teams in the rankings.

The match between Aston Villa and Arsenal at Villa Park brought 90 minutes of emotion with a dramatic chase. Right from the first minutes, both teams actively increased the speed, creating an attractive attacking game.

Aston Villa's Matty Cash scores the opening goal against Arsenal.

Arsenal started the game stronger, constantly organizing quick combinations in the middle and on the wings. Martin Odegaard created the first chance with a long-range shot that went wide, before Bukayo Saka tested Emiliano Martinez with a powerful shot that was not difficult enough to beat the Argentine goalkeeper.

Aston Villa were not to be outdone. With the speed and cunning of Ollie Watkins, the home team repeatedly made Arsenal's defense falter. In the 10th minute, Watkins escaped to face David Raya but the Arsenal goalkeeper reacted quickly to clear the danger.

In the 14th minute, Saka missed the clearest chance of the first half when he headed wide in a nearly empty goal. It wasn't until the 22nd minute that Arsenal thought they had opened the scoring after putting the ball into the net, but VAR determined that the player involved in the situation was offside.

With the game in the balance, the turning point came in the 36th minute. From an attacking combination on the right flank, the ball was returned just in time for Matty Cash to finish neatly, putting Aston Villa 1-0 up. This goal not only helped the home team relieve pressure but also ended an exciting half where both teams created chances but Villa were the better team.

In the second half, Arsenal pushed up their formation to find an equalizer. The mobility of Trossard and Saka put Villa's defense on constant alert. In the 52nd minute, after a chaotic ball in the penalty area, Trossard quickly finished past Martinez, bringing the match to a 1-1 balance. The equalizer helped Arsenal play more confidently, continuously approaching the penalty area with shots from Odegaard and Declan Rice, but accuracy was still what they lacked.

Emi Buendía (right) celebrates after scoring the decisive goal in the final minutes.

As the game progressed, the tempo of the game picked up. Aston Villa responded with quick counter-attacks, with Watkins and Ian Maatsen both having clear chances but failing to capitalise. Arsenal also sent in more attacking forces in search of a decisive goal, but Martinez remained a solid stopper.

The drama reached its climax in the final minute of injury time. From a chaotic ball in the Arsenal penalty area, Emiliano Buendia quickly rushed in and fired a close-range shot, sealing a thrilling 2-1 victory for Aston Villa.

This defeat not only ended Arsenal's 18-match unbeaten streak in all competitions, but also caused Aston Villa to narrow the gap on the rankings to 3 points, fanning the flames of the race for the top spot in the Premier League.

Starting lineup:

Aston Villa: Martinez, Cash. Konsa, Torres, Maatsen, Onana, Tielemans, Kamara, McGinn, Rogers, Watkins.

Arsenal: Raya, White, Timber, Hincapie, Calafiori, Zubimendi, Rice, Odegaard, Saka, Eze, Merino.

Final: Aston Villa 2-1 Arsenal.

Source: https://baoxaydung.vn/that-bai-truoc-aston-villa-arsenal-dut-mach-18-tran-bat-bai-lien-tiep-192251206234255548.htm