‘Nobody drags Arsenal around like this’ – Danny Murphy blown away by what Aston Villa did vs Arsenal
Danny Murphy couldn’t believe what Aston Villa were able to do to Arsenal on Saturday.
Villa secured a 2-1 win over Arsenal as Unai Emery’s side moved just three points behind the Premier League leaders.
Villa Park was sent into utter bedlam as Emi Buendia netted a last-gasp winner against Arsenal with the scrappiest of goals.
The question is now whether Villa are in a Premier League title race, but for now, fans are left revelling in the joy of such a late victory.
Murphy was left astonished by what he saw from the Villans, with Youri Tielemans and Morgan Rogers in particular catching the eye.
Aston Villa tactical approach halted Arsenal
Emery could have made changes at half time against Arsenal, but as always, he knows best and got his plans spot on in B6.
The Spaniard kept it tight for 66 minutes before opting to swap Ollie Watkins with Donyell Malen, before bringing Jadon Sancho and Emi Buendia on.
The Villans looked the more likely to grab a winner, and that is exactly what they got through Buendia with his calm strike in the middle of a penalty area scrap.
It was the work of Rogers and Tielemans that continuously afforded Villa space and time to create chances throughout the afternoon.
That wasn’t lost on Murphy, who spoke out via Match of the Day on 6 December to pile praise on the duo and their work to dismantle Arsenal.
He said: “This is an unbelievable run from Rogers, by the way, talk about confidence and skill from him. There’s Tielemans again, his energy today, he looked like he had a point to prove.
“Two pockets, Zubimendi doesn’t know which way to go, Rogers drifts over from that central position, it’s an in-to-out run, and because of that, Timber has to go with him. That’s the Arsenal centre-half at right-back. Zubimendi has had to cover Timber, so you’ve got a midfielder at centre-half.
“Nobody drags Arsenal around like this. It was absolutely brilliant.”
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Youri Tielemans showed Arsenal who’s boss
There was so much talk heading into the B6 clash over whether Declan Rice would be fit and if Martin Odegaard would start for the Gunners.
Zubimendi has also been lauded this season for what has been a positive start to life since his summer move from Real Sociedad.
All of this discussion was made meaningless on the day when Tielemans rocked up and put in a stellar performance once again in claret and blue.
The 28-year-old featured across the full 90 and helped dictate play with 28 passes and an 80 per cent accuracy, while also having a telling impact going forward.
The Belgium international created one chance and took two shots of his own as he flowed around the pitch alongside Rogers.
Tielemans didn’t shirk defensive duties either, contributing to 10 defensive actions and four duel wins on the day.
Rogers was also superb with his four attempted dribbles and two chances created, but his midfield colleague certainly showed Arsenal how it’s done.
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