Aston Villa vs Arsenal, 2026-27 English Premier League
· English Premier LeagueBukayo Saka goal gives Arsenal narrow win over Aston Villa
Bukayo Saka's second-half strike gave Arsenal an edgy 1-0 victory at Aston Villa.
Match Commentary
- 0': Lineups are announced and players are warming up.
- 0': First Half begins.
- 5': John McGinn (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 5': Foul by Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal).
- 7': Attempt missed. John McGinn (Aston Villa) left footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the left. Assisted by Emiliano Buendía.
- 8': Attempt blocked. Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal) left footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Christos Tzolis.
- 8': Corner, Arsenal. Conceded by Matty Cash.
- 8': Attempt missed. Gabriel Magalhães (Arsenal) header from the centre of the box misses to the left following a corner.
- 8': Offside, Arsenal. Declan Rice is caught offside.
- 12': Emiliano Buendía (Aston Villa) hits the bar with a right footed shot from outside the box. Assisted by Boubacar Kamara.
- 13': Attempt missed. Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) left footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the left. Assisted by Declan Rice.
- 13': Foul by Boubacar Kamara (Aston Villa).
- 13': Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 14': Offside, Arsenal. Kai Havertz is caught offside.
- 16': Foul by George Hemmings (Aston Villa).
- 16': Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) wins a free kick on the right wing.
- 17': Corner, Arsenal. Conceded by Matty Cash.
- 18': Attempt missed. Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal) header from the left side of the six yard box is too high. Assisted by Declan Rice with a cross following a corner.
- 19': Corner, Aston Villa. Conceded by Myles Lewis-Skelly.
- 20': Foul by John McGinn (Aston Villa).
- 20': Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 25': Corner, Arsenal. Conceded by Pau Torres.
- 25': John McGinn (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 25': Foul by Gabriel Magalhães (Arsenal).
- 27': Attempt missed. Ian Maatsen (Aston Villa) right footed shot from the left side of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Ross Barkley.
- 28': Foul by Ian Maatsen (Aston Villa).
- 28': Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) wins a free kick on the right wing.
- 29': Matty Cash (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 29': Foul by Christos Tzolis (Arsenal).
- 29': Christos Tzolis (Arsenal) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
- 31': Foul by Boubacar Kamara (Aston Villa).
- 31': Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 34': Offside, Arsenal. Bukayo Saka is caught offside.
- 36': Matty Cash (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 36': Foul by Kai Havertz (Arsenal).
- 37': Foul by George Hemmings (Aston Villa).
- 37': Ben White (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 38': Foul by Matty Cash (Aston Villa).
- 38': Christos Tzolis (Arsenal) wins a free kick on the left wing.
- 44': Offside, Arsenal. Kai Havertz is caught offside.
- 45'+1': Fourth official has announced 1 minutes of added time.
- 45'+1': First Half ends, Aston Villa 0, Arsenal 0.
- 45': Substitution, Arsenal. Eberechi Eze replaces Christos Tzolis.
- 45': Second Half begins Aston Villa 0, Arsenal 0.
- 47': Attempt missed. Ian Maatsen (Aston Villa) left footed shot from the left side of the box is too high. Assisted by Ross Barkley.
- 52': Foul by Ian Maatsen (Aston Villa).
- 52': Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 54': Foul by Ian Maatsen (Aston Villa).
- 54': Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 55': VAR Decision: No Penalty Arsenal.
- 57': Attempt missed. Martin Ødegaard (Arsenal) left footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right from a direct free kick.
- 59': Goal! Aston Villa 0, Arsenal 1. Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) right footed shot from very close range to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Riccardo Calafiori.
- 61': Foul by Matty Cash (Aston Villa).
- 61': Eberechi Eze (Arsenal) wins a free kick on the left wing.
- 63': Foul by Pau Torres (Aston Villa).
- 63': Kai Havertz (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 64': Foul by Ian Maatsen (Aston Villa).
- 64': Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) wins a free kick on the right wing.
- 64': Attempt blocked. Matty Cash (Aston Villa) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by John McGinn.
- 68': Attempt blocked. Ross Barkley (Aston Villa) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
- 70': Attempt missed. John McGinn (Aston Villa) left footed shot from outside the box is too high.
- 71': Substitution, Arsenal. Bruno Guimarães replaces Myles Lewis-Skelly.
- 71': Substitution, Arsenal. Mikel Merino replaces Martin Ødegaard.
- 71': Substitution, Aston Villa. Tammy Abraham replaces Nicolas Jackson.
- 71': Substitution, Aston Villa. Alysson replaces George Hemmings.
- 73': Offside, Arsenal. Kai Havertz is caught offside.
- 74': Attempt saved. Kai Havertz (Arsenal) left footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal by Zion Suzuki (Aston Villa). Assisted by Ben White.
- 75': Ross Barkley (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 75': Foul by Mikel Merino (Arsenal).
- 75': Offside, Arsenal. Kai Havertz is caught offside.
- 76': Offside, Arsenal. Riccardo Calafiori is caught offside.
- 77': Delay in match because of an injury Cristhian Mosquera (Arsenal).
- 78': Substitution, Aston Villa. Aaron Wan-Bissaka replaces Matty Cash.
- 78': Substitution, Aston Villa. Alejandro Garnacho replaces Ross Barkley.
- 78': Delay over. They are ready to continue.
- 79': Substitution, Arsenal. Ezri Konsa replaces Cristhian Mosquera because of an injury.
- 80': Corner, Aston Villa. Conceded by Bukayo Saka.
- 80': Alysson (Aston Villa) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
- 81': Foul by John McGinn (Aston Villa).
- 81': Mikel Merino (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 81': John McGinn (Aston Villa) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
- 85': Corner, Arsenal. Conceded by Victor Lindelöf.
- 85': Substitution, Arsenal. Martín Zubimendi replaces Declan Rice.
- 90': Fourth official has announced 8 minutes of added time.
- 90'+3': Foul by Boubacar Kamara (Aston Villa).
- 90'+3': Kai Havertz (Arsenal) wins a free kick on the right wing.
- 90'+4': Foul by John McGinn (Aston Villa).
- 90'+4': Mikel Merino (Arsenal) wins a free kick on the right wing.
- 90'+4': Offside, Arsenal. Kai Havertz is caught offside.
- 90'+6': Foul by Ian Maatsen (Aston Villa).
- 90'+6': Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) wins a free kick on the right wing.
- 90'+6': Ian Maatsen (Aston Villa) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
- 90'+8': Emiliano Buendía (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 90'+8': Foul by Mikel Merino (Arsenal).
- 90'+9': Handball by Aaron Wan-Bissaka (Aston Villa).
- 90'+10': Second Half ends, Aston Villa 0, Arsenal 1.
- 0': Match ends, Aston Villa 0, Arsenal 1.
Statistics
 ARS |
AVL |
|
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Fouls | 17 |
| 1 | Yellow Cards | 3 |
| 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
| 8 | Offsides | 0 |
| 4 | Corner Kicks | 2 |
| 0 | Saves | 1 |
| 60.8 | Possession | 39.2 |
| 7 | SHOTS | 7 |
| 2 | ON GOAL | 0 |
| 0.3 | On Target % | 0.0 |
| 0 | Penalty Goals | 0 |
| 0 | Penalty Kicks Taken | 0 |
| 462 | Accurate Passes | 272 |
| 527 | Passes | 337 |
| 0.9 | Pass Completion % | 0.8 |
| 3 | Accurate Crosses | 1 |
| 16 | Crosses | 11 |
| 0.2 | Cross % | 0.1 |
| 40 | Long Balls | 42 |
| 15 | Accurate Long Balls | 15 |
| 0.4 | Long Balls % | 0.4 |
| 1 | Blocked Shots | 2 |
| 7 | Effective Tackles | 11 |
| 13 | Tackles | 20 |
| 0.5 | Tackle % | 0.6 |
| 8 | Interceptions | 2 |
| 20 | Effective Clearances | 16 |
| 20 | Clearances | 16 |
Game Information
Competition: English Premier League
Venue: Villa Park
Location: Birmingham, England
Attendance: 36,804
Venue: Villa Park
Location: Birmingham, England
Attendance: 36,804
Premier League Standings
| # | TEAM | GP | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester City | 7 | +12 | 21 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 6 | +5 | 15 |
| 3 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 6 | +13 | 13 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 7 | +4 | 13 |
Line-Ups
Aston Villa (4-2-3-1)
| No. | Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | Zion Suzuki (GK) |
| 14 | Pau Torres |
| 3 | Victor Lindelöf |
| 22 | Ian Maatsen  |
| 2 | Matty Cash |
| 10 | Emiliano Buendía |
| 6 | Ross Barkley |
| 8 | Boubacar Kamara |
| 11 | Nicolas Jackson |
| 53 | George Hemmings |
| 7 | John McGinn |
Arsenal (4-2-3-1)
| No. | Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | David Raya (GK) |
| 6 | Gabriel Magalhães |
| 3 | Cristhian Mosquera |
| 33 | Riccardo Calafiori |
| 4 | Ben White |
| 8 | Martin Ødegaard |
| 49 | Myles Lewis-Skelly |
| 41 | Declan Rice |
| 29 | Kai Havertz |
| 17 | Christos Tzolis |
| 7 | Bukayo Saka |
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