Gary Neville believes Arsenal’s win over Aston Villa can be deemed a statement victory as the Gunners showed steel and style to continue their perfect start to their Premier League campaign.
Mikel Arteta’s side ended their hoodoo against Villa – who beat the Gunners twice last season – thanks to goals from super substitute Leandro Trossard and Thomas Partey, but were reliant on David Raya’s heroics as he pulled off a world-class save to deny Ollie Watkins with the score goalless.
Neville believes Arsenal’s ability to adapt to different game scenarios makes them a “powerhouse” team, as the Gunners continued their unbeaten record of Premier League away games to 10 matches.
Asked if Arsenal’s win over Villa was a statement victory, the Sky Sports pundit told The Gary Neville Podcast: “I think so. What happened in these two games last season has been well reported before and we thought it was going to be a brilliant game.
“We thought it would be tough, a real test for Arsenal as Villa are a good side.
“What you can’t deny is Arsenal’s defensive record. It’s not all down to David Raya, but when you do get past that very, very good defence, centre-back pairing, the midfield, the shape of the team is fantastic as well.
“Whether they are pressing high up the pitch, or whether they are defending deep, I really like what Mikel Arteta’s done. They’re not saying: ‘we’re a high-pressing team’. They can, but they can also play deep and they can adapt to the style of the game with the way in which the game is going.
“Arteta has got a strong team with Arsenal. They were put under pressure from set pieces in the last 25 minutes and they handled it really well. They are a powerhouse team now.”
‘Arteta reacted to Man City and Gvardiol with left-back situation’
Neville was particularly impressed with how Arsenal and Arteta have reacted to the left-back dilemma at the club.
The Gunners started Oleksandr Zinchenko – who was largely the club’s first-choice left-back over the last two seasons – for the season opener against Wolves last weekend, but Jurrien Timber started against Aston Villa, with summer signing £42m Riccardo Calafiori coming off the bench to see out the game for his Premier League debut.
Calafiori is the only new face at Arsenal this season, though Real Sociedad midfielder Mikel Merino is set to join the squad next week.
“Some of the most successful transfer windows is where you keep stability in your squad and you add one or two that make it the final two pieces of the jigsaw. In the two games against Villa last season, left-back was a problem,” Neville said.
“We saw what City did, in the last 10 games of the season, Josko Gvardiol’s impact from left-back was immense. Not just from a defensive point of view, but an attacking one – his power, strength, height. Arteta has reacted to that.
“He knows he has Timber coming back but he has Calafiori as well. He’s a big boy, powerful, strong, can play in a number of different positions. So that’s a definite response from what he needed last season.
“You talk about these fine margins of one goal or two goals that can tip the title race your way. That could be today. I like what Timber did, he kept a close eye on Leon Bailey. He’s a difficult person to play against but Timber was confident on the ball, he looked good when he went into midfield and still does the job of what Zinchenko does. And Calafiori when he came on looked really strong, up for the fight. He has that spirit about him.
“Zinchenko will still play his role against the bottom six or 10 teams, when you have a mountain of possession at home and you’re going to have to probe the ball through tight spaces. Zinchenko will be fantastic in those matches.
“But when you’re playing against a really top team and you need to keep a clean sheet, and you need someone at the back post who can defend and you need six big’uns, that’s when you’ll need Timber and Calafiori. He has got that now, Arteta – it’s a good way in which he has adapted.”
‘Players like Trossard are needed – they have 36 cup finals’
Neville also enjoyed Trossard’s performance against Villa. The Belgian winger entered the game just after the hour mark and scored with his first touch on 67 minutes.
Trossard was also heavily involved in unlocking the Villa defence for Thomas Partey’s second – and played another big role in Martin Odegaard’s missing a big opportunity to make it 3-0.
“He’s a very good player, very intelligent player, smart player,” Neville said of Trossard. “A very important part of Arsenal’s squad.
“It’s great that you have players in a 21 or 22-player squad with such quality and good professionalism and understand it’s going to be a long season, that they’re going to play their part – not just as a substitute but there will be games where they start as well.
“That’s always the case in teams that have been successful and Arsenal are on the brink of success. They have not got to where they want to be yet. But they have the Champions League games, the FA Cup, the Carabao Cup and they have big league games.
“They have 36 left and they’re all cup finals, the way in which Man City make league games nowadays, they make every game absolutely vital. You can’t have a month off, or a week or two.
“They will all contribute. If Arsenal are to be successful this season and win the league, they will know they all have to do their part and do their jobs. It’s difficult when you’re left out, but Trossard seems to handle it really well.”
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