Danny Murphy outlines the key difference that saw Arsenal smash Aston Villa – ‘just phenomenal’
Arsenal made a statement by thumping Aston Villa and putting an end to their winning streak at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday.
A stunning second-half performance saw Arsenal beat Villa 4-1 to go five points clear at the top of the table, and six points above Unai Emery‘s team.
The returning Gabriel found the opener from a corner before Martin Zubimendi, Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Jesus scored to crush the visitors, who could only net a late consolation through Ollie Watkins.
Villa had several chances through Watkins against Arsenal in the first half, but failed to capitalise with their opportunities.
Piero Hincapie was among several Arsenal standouts in their clash with Villa, on a night that saw Mikel Arteta‘s side return to their very best.
Danny Murphy waxes lyrical about Arsenal defensive duo
Arsenal lost 1-0 to Villa at Villa Park at the start of the month, with Emi Buendia‘s stoppage-time winner serving as a huge blow.
The Gunners had been outrun and outpressed in Birmingham, but looked to put it right on Tuesday night.
What was already a tall task, however, was made even more difficult by the news that Declan Rice would be missing from the squad after suffering a knee injury against Brighton.
The England international has been superb for Arsenal this season, and many have wondered how they would cope in his absence.
It was a return elsewhere that really made the difference, however. Gabriel has been missing since November, but was finally restored to the starting line-up on Tuesday.
And the Brazilian’s effect was transformative. He was dominant in both boxes, rising above Emi Martinez to give Arsenal the lead, and constantly appearing to serve as the last line of defence.
With his partner back, William Saliba also looked like a player restored, making several key defensive contributions.
One first-half moment saw the Frenchman make an incredible last-ditch sliding tackle to take the ball off Watkins’ toes when the striker looked like scoring a certain goal.
“They commit men forward, and the reason they do it is because they believe and trust their defenders to play one on one and to cope,” Danny Murphy told BBC Match of the Day on Tuesday.
“And there’s none better really than Saliba when he’s on top of his game. Right position again, he’s got the athleticism, the pace, calm, no danger – ok the ball could’ve been better.
“But time and time again, we saw them break on Arsenal and the Arsenal back four don’t panic. This here from Saliba – he doesn’t know this is going to be given a couple of inches offside – look at this, that is just phenomenal.
“That’s what you get when you put those two together, you get the athleticism, the calmness, and the fear factor. I think it gives them a great platform to really go after teams and of course, the game they lost at Villa, neither of them were playing.”
The stats behind Gabriel and William Saliba’s stunning showings
Between them, Gabriel and Saliba made two tackles, three clearances, two blocks, two interceptions and three recoveries against Villa.
They also completed 16 passes into the final third, driving Arsenal forward as the game wore on.
| vs Aston Villa | William Saliba | Gabriel |
| Minutes played | 90 | 77 |
| Accurate passes | 35/40 | 30/37 |
| Goals | 0 | 1 |
| Tackles | 2 | 0 |
| Clearances | 1 | 1 |
| Duels won | 4/6 | 3/5 |
It cannot be understated how much the Gunners have missed the partnership at the back. The two share such a unique relationship, and the effect reverberates around the team when one of them is missing.
With both now back and in strong form once again, Arsenal are simply a far better team.