Arsenal Player Ratings vs. Aston Villa: Gunners Suffer Heartbreak With Final Kick
Arsenal fell to a stunning 95th-minute defeat on Saturday lunchtime as Emiliano Buendía secured a 2–1 Premier League victory for Aston Villa with the final kick of a breathless encounter.
Arsenal found themselves trailing at the half-time whistle courtesy of a driven strike from Matty Cash inside the penalty area, Mikel Arteta’s side left with a mountain to climb after the restart at Villa Park as they looked to further their lead at the Premier League’s summit.
Substitute Leandro Trossard quickly found an equaliser after the break to offer Arsenal hope of a turnaround in the Midlands, but they were left reeling come the full-time whistle as Buendía’s strike in the dying seconds clinched all three points for Villa.
The result offers Manchester City and Chelsea the chance to close the gap on Arsenal, with Villa themselves having moved within three points of the table-toppers.
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Arsenal Player Ratings vs. Aston Villa (4-3-3)
GK: David Raya—6.9: Beaten by the power of Cash’s ferocious effort having already produced an excellent save to deny Ollie Watkins. Helpless with Buendía’s winner having made a top save just seconds prior.
RB: Ben White—6.7: Offered plenty of attacking support down the right-hand side as he dovetailed nicely with Bukayo Saka. Handled himself well defensively against the tricky Morgan Rogers.
CB: Jurriën Timber—6.7: Utilised at centre back amid Arsenal’s injury issues in defence and matched the speed and endeavour of Villa’s forward line for the most part. Occasionally looked ruffled in the centre of the pitch.
CB: Piero Hincapié—6.7: Struggled at time with Watkins’ speed and direct approach, but generally handled the Englishman effectively. Grew into the game and performed admirably.
LB: Riccardo Calafiori—6.6: Took up advanced positions during the first half but reverted to a more orthodox position after the break. Almost gifted Villa a goal just after the hour mark with a sloppy pass and then picked up a yellow that means he will be suspended next weekend.
CM: Martin Ødegaard—7.5: Orchestrated things in the final third, especially after half time, and produced some delightful passes and stinging shots from the edge of the area. A great showing from the skipper.
CM: Martín Zubimendi—6.7: A solid but unspectacular performance from Zubimendi, who rarely drew they eye from a defensive or attacking standpoint.
CM: Declan Rice—7.7: Covered every single blade of grass at Villa Park in what was an all-action display from the midfielder. Produced a vital block to deny Cash in the first half, forced the turnover in the build-up to Arsenal’s leveller and charged into tackles throughout.
RW: Bukayo Saka—7.5: Unsurprisingly, Saka was Arsenal’s leading attacking threat and he created Trossard’s equaliser with a teasing delivery. Enjoyed a fierce battle with Ian Maatsen, who was relieved by the winger’s withdrawal in the 79th minute after a yellow card.
ST: Mikel Merino—6.1: Struggled to replicate his terrific Brentford display as he was seldom involved, gifting the ball back to Villa when he did receive possession. Taken off at half time.
LW: Eberechi Eze—6.0: Offered very little in the final third and switched off defensively for Cash’s goal. Managed just 13 touches before being withdrawn at the break.
Substitute | Rating (Out of 10) |
|---|---|
Leandro Trossard (46’ for Eze) | 7.2 |
Viktor Gyökeres (46’ for Merino) | 6.1 |
Noni Madueke (79’ for Saka) | 6.2 |
Gabriel Martinelli (86’ for Trossard) | N/A |
Myles Lewis-Skelly (86’ for Calafiori) | N/A |
Subs not used: Kepa Arrizabalaga (GK), Marli Salmon, Christian Nørgaard, Ethan Nwaneri, Gabriel Martinelli.
Aston Villa (4-2-3-1)
Starting XI: Emiliano Martínez; Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Pau Torres, Ian Maatsen; Boubacar Kamara, Amadou Onana; John McGinn, Youri Tielemans, Morgan Rogers; Ollie Watkins.
Subs used: Donyell Malen, Jadon Sancho, Lamare Bogarde, Emi Buendía, Victor Lindelöf.
Player of the Match: Boubacar Kamara
Arsenal Player of the Match: Declan Rice
Aston Villa 2–1 Arsenal—How It Unfolded at Villa Park
Arsenal had failed to win three of their previous four meetings with former manager Unai Emery and his resilient Villa team, who themselves were enjoying an eight-game winning run on home soil. The sides entered the fixture in excellent form and were brimming with belief during the early exchanges.
Both goalkeepers were swiftly put to work at Villa Park. Testing efforts from Martin Ødegaard and Saka from outside the box forced Emiliano Martínez to stretch himself, while Watkins brought a terrific save from David Raya following some powerful centre-forward play.
Little separated the teams during an enthralling first half but Cash ensured an encounter of fine margins was in Villa’s control at the break. The Poland international, who scored the winner against Manchester City back in late October, rattled a strike through Raya’s legs following a deflected delivery to the far post.
Matty Cash puts @AVFCOfficial ahead against Arsenal!
— Premier League (@premierleague) December 6, 2025
He fires the ball home with a quality first-time shot 💥 pic.twitter.com/I1Kz0YPdID
Arsenal came out with a point to prove after the restart and were level within eight minutes. Arteta turned to his substitutes at the break and he was swiftly rewarded for his faith in Trossard, who arrived on to the pitch and powered home another crucial goal for the Gunners in their time of need.
The equaliser helped galvanise the visitors as they looked to complete the comeback and it was soon wave after wave of Arsenal pressure. Ødegaard’s growing influence caused issues for Villa and the Norwegian was denied by a wonder save from Martínez amid a flurry of chances. Boubacar Kamara was next to thwart the Gunners as a crucial block prevented Saka finding the bottom corner.
Villa wrestled control back in the closing stages and could well have scored when substitute Donyell Malen struck agonisingly wide from 10 yards out. The forward’s compatriot Jurriën Timber then deflected a delivery across his own six-yard box as Arsenal breathed several sighs of relief.
But Arsenal’s relief turned to exasperation in the fifth minute of stoppage time as they sunk to only their second defeat of the season in all competitions. An almighty goal-mouth scramble ended up at the feet of substitute Buendía, who kept his composure to bend beyond Raya and dent Arsenal’s title dreams.
Aston Villa vs. Arsenal Half Time Stats
Statistic | Aston Villa | Arsenal |
|---|---|---|
Possession | 42% | 58% |
Expected Goals (xG) | 0.93 | 0.87 |
Total Shots | 4 | 6 |
Shots on Target | 2 | 4 |
Big Chances | 2 | 1 |
Pass Accuracy | 82% | 86% |
Fouls Committed | 6 | 2 |
Corners | 3 | 0 |
Aston Villa vs. Arsenal Full Time Stats
Statistic | Aston Villa | Arsenal |
|---|---|---|
Possession | 47% | 53% |
Expected Goals (xG) | 2.27 | 1.84 |
Total Shots | 15 | 15 |
Shots on Target | 6 | 9 |
Big Chances | 5 | 4 |
Pass Accuracy | 82% | 85% |
Fouls Committed | 10 | 8 |
Corners | 3 | 3 |
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