So that is why Arsenal signed David Raya. For all the chatter about modern goalkeepers needing to be playmakers, nothing beats one who can keep the ball out of the net when the opposition look certain to score.
With the match goalless early in the second half and Aston Villa’s belief growing, Amadou Onana’s shot from the edge of the box clipped Arsenal defender Gabriel and looped towards goal. Readjusting quicky, Raya leapt backwards and turned the ball on to the bar.
He was not finished there, either. With no defender in sight, Ollie Watkins seemed certain to head in the loose ball yet as the Holte End prepared to celebrate, Raya flung himself forward and pushed the ball away.
Less than 15 minutes later, substitute Leandro Trossard put Mikel Arteta’s men ahead and Thomas Partey sealed the win not long afterwards. Villa keeper Emi Martinez – who left Arsenal four years ago – should have done better with that one, which made Raya’s stops look even more impressive.
Martinez believes he has become the world’s best since leaving north London and he was taunted mercilessly by the travelling supporters after that error.
Leandro Trossard had a stunning impact, scoring within moments of coming on for Arsenal
It came after David Raya produced an Olympian save to deny Ollie Watkins from close range
Nothing will be decided at this stage of the season but last term, two defeats to Villa effectively cost Arsenal the title. Though the Gunners got lucky at times here, it felt like a hugely significant result.
The match did not spring into life until the 15-minute mark. Kick-off was delayed by five minutes, apparently due to communication problems between the officials and the VAR room, and fans were still taking their seats well into the first half. A new ticketing system at Villa had caused huge queues outside the ground.
Then barely two minutes into the game, Amadou Onana was felled in a challenge with Jurrien Timber – making his first start for more than a year – and there was a further stoppage. Matty Cash turned his ankle trying to stop a cross from Gabriel Martinelli and had to be replaced, moments before Bukayo Saka drew a fine low save from Emi Martinez.
Villa were happy to let Arsenal have the ball and the Gunners’ build-up in the opening period was ponderous. John McGinn had a spicy exchange with Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta after the Villa skipper was fouled, before Ollie Watkins missed a fabulous chance to put Villa ahead.
Leon Bailey picked the pocket of Gabriel, allowing Morgan Rogers to slide the ball across for Watkins. In front of the North Stand and 12 yards from goal, Watkins somehow failed to hit the target, sliding the ball wide. Villa Park groaned.
Arsenal looked briefly rattled as Timber carried the ball out of play under pressure from Cash’s replacement Kosta Nedeljkovic. The nerves were catching, though: Pau Torres misplaced a routine pass and Unai Emery leapt down the touchline in frustration.
Though Bailey was not always precise in attack, he did superbly at the other end to cut out a cross from Kai Havertz. Then, a moment of comedy: McGinn drilled the ball at the prone William Saliba, only for Ben White to smash it straight back at the Scotland man. Referee Michael Oliver, superb throughout, did well to calm the players without showing a card.
When Martinelli collected a pass from Declan Rice and crossed for Havertz, the German found his feet in a tangle at the near post. Rogers was starting to worry Arsenal by dropping deep and running at their back line, and Rice was booked for stopping the young attacker as he drove for goal.
Thomas Partey sealed the victory with a strike that Emi Martinez should have done better with
Arteta was growing edgy too and was furious when Onana escaped a booking for shoving Thomas Partey.
Raya performed a near-miracle to keep Arsenal level early in the second half. First he pushed Onana’s shot, which had looped off Gabriel, on to the crossbar, before somehow recovering to keep out Watkins’ follow-up header. Yes, Watkins should have scored, but Raya’s reflexes were simply breathtaking.
Rogers was just as exciting. Picking up the ball well inside his own half, Rogers shrugged off attempts by Martinelli and Partey to foul him and won his side a corner.
After Watkins’ misses, Saka became the next England star to waste a great chance. Collecting a return pass from Martin Odegaard, Saka bore down on Martinez then lost his balance. At the other end, Ezri Konsa volleyed Lucas Digne’s free-kick across goal but nobody was there to convert it.
Moments earlier, Arteta had sent on Trossard for Martinelli and the Belgian made a spectacular impact. Saka showed tremendous speed to keep the ball alive and fire it back into the danger zone, and though Rogers toed the ball away from Havertz, it fell perfectly for Trossard to steer it past Martinez.
Villa were leaving gaps now and Arsenal sealed it with 13 minutes left. Trossard scampered down the left, Saka retrieved his cross and found Partey, whose shot from just outside the box crept in via Martinez’s left hand. Odegaard smashed the ball into the North Stand when Rice set him up perfectly, though 3-0 would have been hard on Villa. There was still time for Saliba to make a stunning challenge on substitute Jacob Ramsey as Arsenal saw it through.