A trip to Emirates Stadium to face Mikel Arteta's side poses "maybe the most difficult challenge" Aston Villa will face this season. Arsenal "will want to try to show their power" after falling to a 2-1 defeat in their recent outing against the Villans. It was a really tough match for us and it was good that we showed our mentality right until the last minute." We are one point behind Manchester City and three points behind Arsenal, but we are still doing things our way." He is looking for his side to "stay humble" but believes they can be "confident and ambitious" after their start to this season.

Source: BBC December 30, 2025 10:24 UTC