Three Things We Learned After Champions Arsenal Beat Villa
Bukayo Saka’s 59th minute goal was enough to seal all three points for Mikel Arteta’s champions in front of 36,804 fans at Villa Park on Monday evening
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Mikel Arteta’s Gunners begin their title defence with back to back victories after the 1-0 win at Villa Park on Monday evening. CREDIT: Layth (@laythy29)
1 - Back to back wins as we hunt back to back titles
Someone asked me a good question the other day: What would I prefer? To win the Premier League title again, or win the Champions League for the first time.
My instinct was to answer ‘both’. But, alas, my initial response was disqualified, on the ground that you can’t have your cake and eat it.
As a kid I devoured every morsel of information I could find about The Arsenal, which, in those analogue days, was more difficult than kids might think today. Which meant I read anything and everything about our club that I could get my hands on. Even purposely heading to the library to get read every single book I could find, in my mission to find out more about the Gunners.
And amid the raft of information about our glorious history and heritage I hungrily memorised, I was fascinated by our dominance in the 1930s. Including landing a hattrick of Division One titles, which seemed so beyond my comprehension.
Especially when the reality of watching Arsenal in the early to mid 1980s meant we were lucky to win three games on the bounce, let alone three titles.
Fast forward four decades, and a completely different world, to answer the question: I don’t want back to back titles. I want The Arsenal to win a hattrick of titles.
Meaning, winning the Premier League comes first for me, every single time.
Not least because it also means you are the best in the country. No arguments. No dispute. And after the glorious summer we’ve had, well since May 19, simply saying the word ‘champions’ over and over again is so satisfying.
All of which means wins like last night at Villa win you titles.
Which is what I want more than anything.
2 - A massive win
I was in the away end last night at Villa.
I’ve been going to Birmingham to see Arsenal at Villa Park since the mid 1980s, and it’s invariably a tough game. I won’t bore you with memories of past matches (and scrapes), suffice to say one of the Gunners rare league defeats came at Villa last season. A galling last gasp winner from Emi Buendia, that had the critics and the haters salivating at what they far too eagerly hailed was the start of our decline. Some decline.
My point is that it is not easy to win at Villa Park.
No matter Unai Emery’s side has made a dismal start to the season, losing two from two, after being hammered 4-0 at Brighton on the opening weekend.
Nor the fact former Gunners boss Emery - who absolutely hates losing to Arsenal - have also lost an alarmingly large number of players who helped them to the Europa League title last term.
(This included Ezri Konsa - who, pleasingly, made his debut in a victory at the home of his former club - Villa fans sportingly applauding the centre-back when he came on for Mosquera late on, before, bizarrely, booing him loudly thereafter.)
Nor the fact that Villa’s North Stand was being revamped - meaning the atmosphere for a Bank Holiday evening game was surprisingly flat. Perhaps everyone had that ‘Sunday night feeling’ after the long weekend, even if the groundworks also meant all those annoying home fans in the lower tier giving it large were absent last night. Even if. to be fair, I missed them at times, especially when we sang ‘Champions’, and when dementedly celebrating Saka’s strike, but I digress.
The fact is winning at Villa is a tough task, no matter what the circumstances. Emery’s side had an appalling start to last season, collecting a mere point from their opening four games, while scoring a single goal - and yet they still qualified for the Champions League.
Please don’t get sucked into thinking that it should have been a cakewalk for Arsenal last night. Football doesn’t work like that.
So, 1-0 to the Arsenal. Job done. We move.
No wonder Arteta said after the game: “Really happy. A massive win. A tough place to come and earn the three points.
“We deserved it. A great squad performance - because when 11 wasn’t enough the finishers came in and did a magnificent job to finish off the game.
“Last year we lost here in a really difficult way, with the last kick of the game. And that was still in the tummy.
“We are in the second game and it’s like, ‘we have to win this game!’
“We know that last year was the same. We know the level, we know how difficult it is for every team to earn points in this league, so we have to be really proud tonight.”
3 - The upper tier in the away section at Villa Park is not fit for purpose
When I started watching football back in the 1980s, if I had experienced the upper tier of the away section at Villa Park as it was last night, I would probably have thought it was palatial.
But, then again, I was used to visiting grounds with crumbling, uncovered terraces, fences that kept you penned in while covering your view of the pitch, dangerously overcrowded sections (away at White Hart Lane at any rate), not to mention intimidating policing, and a complete lack of amenities, such as toilets and food and drink outlets.
Indeed, who still recalls being in the cramped away end seats at the old, tiny, Trinity Road Stand, with a low roof, and a single, lower tier all the way along the side of the pitch.
However, that was more than 40 years ago.
Times have changed. To be subjected to a single narrow walkway, with appalling access to toilets, and tea bars, is simply not acceptable in this day and age.
Not with all the billions sloshing around the top level of the game, which, also allows clubs like Villa to rebuild stands purposely to exploit still further the corporate market.
Sort it out Villa. Just like your team last night, it’s simply not good enough.
Rant over, apart from that, it was a top day out with old pals. Come on you Gunners.
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