Mirror Football brings you two of the latest talking points from the Emirates Stadium ahead of Arsenal's clash with Aston Villa
Arsenal's Brazilian defender #06 Gabriel Magalhaes (L) and Arsenal's Spanish defender #36 Martin Zubimendi (R) react at the end of the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Brighton and Hove Albion at the Emirates Stadium in London on December 27, 2025.
Arsenal's Brazilian defender #06 Gabriel Magalhaes (L) and Arsenal's Spanish defender #36 Martin Zubimendi (R) react at the end of the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Brighton and Hove Albion at the Emirates Stadium in London on December 27, 2025.
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Arsenal play Aston Villa again on Tuesday night(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Arsenal return to Premier League action on Tuesday night, where they will take on Aston Villa in an important fixture at the Emirates Stadium. Former Gunners boss Unai Emery's side dealt a blow to Arsenal's title challenge earlier in the month with a last-gasp winner at Villa Park.
Since that defeat, Arsenal have beaten Wolves, Everton, and Brighton in the league, though only by a single-goal margin, despite their dominance. The wasting of chances in front of goal has become increasingly worrying for Mikel Arteta, and he will be aware that his players need to be more clinical to secure all three points against an in-form Villa side.
Arteta outlines transfer plans
Mikel Arteta admits Arsenal’s ongoing injury crisis could push the club to make signings in the January transfer window. The Spaniard was asked in his press conference this week whether the club will look at defensive reinforcements in January, given their lengthy list of absentees.
He claimed the Gunners will remain prepared and actively looking to sign players depending on their needs in the new year. "I don’t know. We're going to be really aware of the situation and the timescale of certain players," Arteta said.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta during a press conference at Estadio do Dragao, Portugal.
Mikel Arteta has spoken about his January transfer plans
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(Image: PA)
"We’re Arsenal and we have to be actively looking, ‘Okay, what do we need?’ and then can we do it or not? That's a different story. But our job is to be always very prepared because something can happen, so hopefully [it can be] very positive."
Arsenal have been linked with AC Milan’s 20-year-old left-back Davide Bartesaghi recently, as well as Juventus sensation Kenan Yildiz.
Concerns over Gyokeres
Arteta also admitted to being concerned about Viktor Gyokeres' lack of goals. The £64million summer signing fired another blank at the weekend against his former side Brighton.
Gyokeres missed a great chance to open the scoring in the early minutes and left plenty to be desired with his movement in the box throughout the game, before being replaced by Gabriel Jesus, who enjoyed a better performance.
Brighton and Hove Albion's Mats Wieffer (left) and Arsenal's Viktor Gyokeres battle for the ball during the Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium, London. Picture date: Saturday December 27, 2025.
Viktor Gyokeres has been disappointing so far for the Gunners
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(Image: PA)
Despite scoring a penalty against Everton earlier in the month, Gyokeres has managed a meagre five Premier League goals this season. The Brighton game marked the Swede’s seventh straight match without a goal in open play, which was put to Arteta as a potential cause for concern.
Arteta said: "Yeah [it is concerning] because we want him to score. Obviously, he had a few chances today, a few great positions and the ball didn't arrive, so... Keep insisting, it's the only way."
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