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Mikel Arteta has said he wants every visiting team to suffer at the Emirates Stadium, as Arsenal host Aston Villa on Tuesday night bidding to avenge their “cruel” defeat from the reverse fixture earlier this month.
Arteta’s league leaders lost 2-1 at Villa Park three weeks ago, when Emi Buendía scored a 95th-minute winner with the last kick of the game.
Arsenal are undefeated since, winning five games in all competitions despite struggling to kill off opposition. They have attempted a combined 65 shots in their last three home outings against Wolves, Crystal Palace and Brighton, yet scored only five goals – four of which were turned into their own net by opposition players.
Villa, meanwhile, came from behind to beat Chelsea on Saturday for an 11th successive win, equalling a club record that has stood for more than a century. Asked whether his side were profiting from good fortune in the form of so many own-goals, Arteta said: “Well, that’s what we want – that every opponent that comes here suffers.”
Arsenal looked to have secured a point in an even encounter at Villa Park when Leandro Trossard cancelled out Matty Cash’s opener. But Buendía struck at the death to inflict only a second Premier League defeat of the season on Arteta’s side.
“We’ll watch it back,” said Arteta. “I have a few ideas and things that we have to do better. And it was quite cruel, as well, the way we lost it. But yeah, we learned from it.”
On whether reliving the defeat could inspire his players, he added: “If you use that motivation and that hunger in the right manner, for sure.”
Just three points separate Arsenal from third-placed Villa, who have been on a remarkable run, claiming more points than any other side since failing to win any of their first five Premier League games.
While Unai Emery insists it is too early for talk of a title challenge, Arteta believes Villa’s league position puts them firmly in the running.
“They are meant to be there,” said the Arsenal manager. “Look what they are doing and how consistent they have been, what Unai has done with the club. So I think they fully deserve that credit.”
Arsenal have lost three of their past five meetings with Villa, picking up just four points in the process. The hosts could be boosted by the presence of centre-back Gabriel Magalhães, who returned from injury off the bench against Brighton. But they may again have to make do without Jurriën Timber and Riccardo Calafiori, both of whom missed Saturday’s 2-1 win, in which Declan Rice filled in at right-back.
The severity of those injuries will probably impact whether Arteta makes any defensive signings in January. “We’re going to be really aware of the situation and the timescale of certain players,” said Arteta. “We want to be better, and we know how important having the right availability with players is going to be this season.
“We’re Arsenal, and we have to be looking at it: ‘OK, what do we need?’ And we have to be actively looking. Can we do it or not? That’s a different story.”
