Revenge is a dish best served cold, or in this case, on a freezing December night in North London. Arsenal delivered an emphatic statement to the Premier League, thrashing Aston Villa 4-1 to avenge their defeat earlier in the month and bring Villa's remarkable 11-match winning streak to a crashing halt.
Mikel Arteta: "We owed them one. The defeat at Villa Park hurt us, and we wanted to show who we really are. The second-half performance was outstanding. We played with such intensity and quality."
The first half was a tense, cagey affair, reminiscent of a chess match between two Grandmasters. Villa arrived with confidence, looking to frustrate and counter, and the sides went into the break deadlocked at 0-0. But whatever Mikel Arteta said at halftime worked wonders.
The floodgates opened just two minutes after the restart. Gabriel Magalhães rose highest to power home a corner, breaking the resistance. Before Villa could recover, Martin Zubimendi doubled the lead in the 51st minute, finishing a slick move orchestrated by Martin Ødegaard. The Emirates was rocking.
Villa looked shell-shocked. Their discipline evaporated as Arsenal turned on the style. Leandro Trossard added a third in the 69th minute with a unerring finish from the edge of the box, and substitute Gabriel Jesus curled in a beauty ten minutes later to make it 4-0. It was a masterclass in attacking football.
Ollie Watkins grabbed a consolation in stoppage time, but it did little to dampen the mood. Villa players appeared frustrated at the final whistle, unable to handle the Gunners' intensity, but for Arsenal, it was the perfect end to the year.
Gabriel Jesus: "It feels good to be back on the scoresheet. We knew this was a big game. They were on a long winning run, but we showed that at the Emirates, it's different. We played so good today."
The Man of the Match award goes to Martin Zubimendi. The midfielder controlled the tempo, scored a crucial goal, and completely dominated the midfield battle against Villa's high-flying engine room.
Arsenal head into 2026 five points clear at the top, having beaten one of their closest rivals in emphatic fashion.
Image Credits https://www.arsenal.com/news/42-incredible-photos-our-aston-villa-win