Arsenal 0-3 Aston Villa: Gunners' Player Ratings as they are humbled at home | Premier League 2020-21
Arsenal were thrashed 3-0 by Aston Villa at the Emirates Stadium in the Premier League, as they were brought back down to earth after last week's win against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Villa had the ball in the back of the net in the first minute, but John McGinn's goal was ruled out for Ross Barkley being offside, while being in Bernd Leno's line of sight.
But Villa took the lead in the first half anyway. Matt Targett set up Trezeguet at the back post, and the ball went into the back of the net off Bukayo Saka who desperately lunged in late to prevent the Egyptian from shooting.
Ollie Watkins then added two goals in a three-minute spell in the second half.
The first one was an easy tap-in, after a sensational cross to him from Ross Barkley, with the midfielder hitting the cross first-time, on the volley.
His second goal was a superb left-footed finish after being played through by Jack Grealish.
Arsenal had presentable opportunities to score throughout the game, through the likes of Alexandre Lacazette, Willian and Rob Holding, but were distinctly second-best throughout the game.
The intensity was missing, there was no urgency in their passing, and in general, failed to build any rhythm in their play throughout the game.
Here's how each player fared for Arsenal.
Arsenal Player Ratings
Bernd Leno - 5/10
Leno had no chance to stop any of the Aston Villa goals, as he was left completely exposed by the Arsenal defence. He did well to prevent an own-goal in the first-half, after a disastrous back-pass to him from Gabriel.
Hector Bellerin - 6/10
Bellerin was one of Arsenal's better players on the night. Going forward though, he needed to make better decisions, as he kept looking for team-mates in the box, when he might have been in a better shooting position.
Rob Holding - 4/10
Holding had a poor game. He was not able to live with Watkins's movement throughout the game. Holding was also left dazzed by Grealish and Barkley's dribbling ability.
Gabriel Magalhaes - 4/10
This was his worst game in an Arsenal shirt since he joined the club in the summer. He was not able to take command at the back, and let Villa players run rings around him.
Kieran Tierney - 5/10
Like Bellerin on the other side, Tierney didn't really have a bad game. He got forward well, and put in some terrific crosses into the box, but Arsenal's strikers didn't take their chances.
Thomas Partey - 5/10
He was overrun by McGinn and Douglas Luiz throughout the first half, and didn't really break up their rhythm. He was replaced by Ceballos at half-time, with what looked like a thigh problem.
Mohamed Elneny - 5/10
Elneny could not reach the highs of last week's performance at Old Trafford, as he got well and truly outplayed in the middle of the park. There was no intensity at all from the Egyptian.
Bukayo Saka - 5/10
The youngster had an underwhelming performance. He could not get the better of Matty Cash down the Arsenal left, and was mostly a non-entity in the attack. The own-goal wasn't his fault, as he was forced to lunge in last-minute, due to a combination of defensive mistakes from Arsenal.
Willian - 3/10
Willian was the worst Arsenal player on the pitch. He gave the ball away on numerous occasions, when there were easy options on for him to play. He had a golden chance early in the second half, just a few yards from goal. He dragged his shot so wide it ended up nearer to the corner flag than the goal.
Alexandre Lacazette - 4/10
Lacazette was not much better than Willian. He had a great chance to score right at the end of the first-half, but his header went high after a sensational Tierney cross.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - 4/10
Once again, Aubameyang cut an isolated figure down the left wing for Arsenal. He didn't create much for the other attackers, and couldn't get into goal-scoring positions himself. This is a conundrum that Arteta needs to solve soon.
Substitutes
Dani Ceballos - 5/10
Ceballos brought some guile and finesse to Arsenal's play through midfield, and was one of a few players who came out of the second half creditably. He also made a superb goal-line clearance to deny Villa a certain goal.
Nicolas Pepe - 5/10
Pepe looked bright and sharp in the few minutes that he got. He curled a shot wide, put in a few dangerous crosses, and looked a real threat throughout the time that he was on the pitch.
Eddie Nketiah - 5/10
Nketiah linked up reasonably well with Pepe, but in the end, it was to no avail.