Arsenal Desperate For A Hero Against The Villains

Written by Jon Shay on 18 September 2014. Posted in 1886 Previews

Match Preview: Aston Villa vs. Arsenal – Premier League 20.09.14

What a difference a year (or not quite a year) makes. Last August, it was a visit from Aston Villa that seemed to derail our season before it could even leave the station. From there, however, we went on a tidy little run, propelled in part by the signing of Özil and the early-season form of Ramsey and Giroud. Fast-forward to September 2014, and, well, it’s quite a different story.

We’re fresh off one of our worst performances of the season to date, a dispiriting defeat away to Borussia Dortmund, and there will be no Özil-esque (Özilian?) signings to inspire us. Instead, we’re looking more than a bit bedraggled, having lost Giroud and Debuchy to early-season injuries while struggling to make a new formation work. Whereas we were playing with verve and confidence at this point last season, having reeled off six consecutive wins after that opening loss to Villa, this time through sees us limping and lurching, having won just two of our last seven.

Meanwhile, Villa are off to a bright start, aided in part by a somewhat softer schedule. Despite scoring only four goals to date, they’ve made the most of these, defeating Stoke 0-1, Hull 2-1, and most surpisingly, Liverpool 0-1. Even if we make allowances for Liverpool’s adjustment-period, that’s a result almost as shocking as Man City 0-1 Stoke. While it’s unlikely that Villa can sustain such an assault on an invincible season, it’s well worth investigating what they’re up to. Paul Lambert has them playing stubbornly behind the ball to deny penetration and launching counterattacks as quickly as Agbonlahor, Weimann, and Richardson get forward. If the idea of facing a side that counters quickly doesn’t yet cause Gooners to squirm, it might be worth adding that Villa do also flourish from set-pieces, even if Benteke and Vlaar will be out.

It’s hard to tell though just who we’ll be facing. Will it be the confident side that waltzed away from Anfield with all three points, or will it be the desultory one that managed a scoreless draw against Newcastle, they of the nine goals conceded in three other matches? In either case, we will have to steel ourselves for a match that, when first announced, seemed ripe for a resounding dose of revenge. Now, however, it feels far tetchier as we look up from seventh in the Prem and try to recover from the drubbing by Dortmund.

LAST 3 Meetings

Aston Villa 1-2 Arsenal (13.01.2014)
Arsenal 1-3 Aston Villa (17.08.2013)
Arsenal 2-1 Aston Villa (23.02.2013)

FACTFILE

Arsenal have actually fared better against Aston Villa at Villa Park (three wins, two draws) than at home (three wins, two losses).
Arsenal are undefeated in 28 of 31 matches against Villa.
The two clubs first squared off in October 1904: Woolwich Arsenal 1-0 Aston Villa.

INJURIES

Debuchy, Giroud, Gnabry, Sanogo, and Walcott will all miss out, while Wilshere and Monreal may face late fitness tests.

POSSIBLE STARTING XI

It seems that the 4-1-4-1 will persist: Szczesny; Gibbs, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Chambers; Flamini; Cazorla, Ramsey, Wilshere, Alexis; Welbeck.

We’ll pin hopes to the idea that the 2-0 loss to Dortmund serves as a gut-check that gets the lads to bear down, but Villa’s early season-form suggests that they’ll be up for the fight.