Premier League

ARSENAL 2 (Jesus 30, Martinelli 77)
ASTON VILLA 1 (Luiz 74)

MIKEL Arteta’s Arsenal recorded a feat that not even the club’s iconic Invincibles managed to achieve tonight (Wednesday) when they beat Aston Villa to make it five wins out of five so far in the Premier League.

Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli netted the goals that saw the Gunners extend their perfect start to the season with a 2-1 win at the Emirates Stadium, a result that keeps the north Londoners perched at the top of the table.

But the night wasn’t without a little panic, albeit for all of the two minutes between substitute Douglas Luiz scoring straight from a corner to draw Villa level and Martinelli almost instantly restoring Arsenal’s advantage.

Praising a side that is getting better and better, Gunners boss Arteta said: “I’m really happy with the result. It’s so tough to win in this league.

“The first half was probably one of the best we have played. We could have scored three, four, five. But we didn’t kill the game and then in this league, the game is alive.

“In the second half, obviously, the game was a fight. They really stretch you, they play really directly, there are a lot of second balls, actions, fouls and it became a little bit of a transitional game where you don’t finish the actions when you have spaces to attack and they’re going to come at you.

“Without really allowing anything for them – one corner – we conceded a goal and then it’s game on again. But the team reacted again incredibly well and I think we deserved to win the game.”

Arsenal dominated the first half, with Jesus, Gabriel Magalhaes, Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka among the players laying siege on a Villa goal desperately defended by keeper Emiliano Martinez and a spate of last-ditch blocks and tackles.

The deadlock was finally broken on the half-hour mark when former Gunners goalie Martinez fumbled Granit Xhaka’s deflected shot, allowing Jesus to pounce from close range and sweep home his third goal of the campaign.

But a 1-0 lead is always precarious, and in the 74th minute it looked like Villa were going to make the Gunners pay for failing to capitalise on their dominance when Luiz’s corner swung into the back of the net.

Aaron Ramsdale protested that he was being impeded – but referee Robert Jones waved away the Arsenal goalkeeper’s complaints.

The parity lasted less than three minutes as Arteta’s side went straight back on the offensive and found the winner through Martinelli, who side-footed Saka’s cross home.

Arsenal: Ramsdale, White (Tomiyasu, 64), Saliba, Gabriel, Tierney, Lokonga, Xhaka, Odegaard (Smith Rowe, 81), Saka (Holding, 88), Martinelli, Jesus (Nketiah, 88)
Substitutes not used: Turner, Soares, Vieira, Marquinhos, Smith

Aston Villa: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Mings, Digne, Kamara (Ings, 83), McGinn (Luiz, 73), Ramsey, Bailey, Buendia (Coutinho, 73), Watkins
Substitutes not used: Olsen, Chambers, Augustinsson, Young, Archer, Iroegbunam