Arsenal tomorrow, tosh talk on title and match facts from the BBC

I want to start with talk of challenging for the title and I'm not going to write about this again because I think it's quite ridiculous that there is even talk about this at the moment. But I understand why.

It's the oldest form of clickbait there is. The media want to get supporters excited. They need to create content. So before we've even reached the halfway mark in the season, the media start to talk about it and all it serves to do is create disappointment. 

And this is why supporters start talking about it, but as the manager has said, if we are 34 games into the season and we find ourselves this close, then we should probably start to talk about it and like with many things, he isn't wrong. There is a long way to go and talking about it now, just makes us look a little too excitable. 

Lets just take it one game at a time and enjoy the journey. And that journey continues tomorrow against Arsenal in London.

And every single game in this League is tough and they don't get much tougher than the likes of Arsenal and Manchester City but we have beaten both of them already this season so we know we have it in us. And how we approached Chelsea the other day demonstrated yet another approach from the manager to get the three points.

I don't doubt we can win also, but like I wrote, it's going to be very tough. It does feel a little like we've rode our luck a little this month, but could you imagine if we did. Could we find what we need one last time this year?

Because that it is what it comes down to. It's all about the match in front of us. What worked well against Chelsea, how did we find it against Brighton and Manchester United. We need to put that all together again or maybe the manager has another approach for Arsenal tomorrow, it would be an impressive end to the season.

And just because the manager says it doesn't mean it's gospel. If we're in the same place or close enough my match 30, I'll be talking about it as possible, but it's tosh to talk about a title challenge while you are not even in the year the title is won.

Match facts from the BBC

• Arsenal have lost three of their last five Premier League matches against Aston Villa (W1 D1) and could see Villa complete a league double over them for the third time in six seasons (also 2020-21 and 2023-24), something they’d done so just once previously in the competition beforehand, in 1992-93.

• Aston Villa are unbeaten in their last two away league games against Arsenal, beating them 2-0 in April 2024 and drawing 2-2 in January last season. They last had a longer run without defeat the Emirates between 2006-07 and 2008-09 (3).

• This is the third time Arsenal have faced an opponent twice in the same month in the Premier League, previously beating Wolves twice in February 2022, and beating Bolton twice in January 2010.

• This is the fourth time Aston Villa have faced an opponent twice in the same month in the Premier League, after May 2022 (W1 D1 v Burnley), May 2021 (W1 D1 v Everton) and March 1996 (W1 L1 v Sheffield Wednesday).

• Arsenal have won their final league game in four of the last five calendar years, with the exception being a 2-1 defeat at Fulham on New Year’s Eve 2023.

• Aston Villa have won their final league game in just two of the last 13 calendar years (D6 L5), beating Middlesbrough 1-0 in 2017 and Burnley 3-2 in 2023.

• This will be Unai Emery’s third away Premier League match at the Emirates since leaving Arsenal, winning one and drawing one with Aston Villa. No former Gunners boss has ever gone three away league games in a row without losing after leaving the club.

• Arsenal’s Eberechi Eze has scored in his team’s final Premier League match of the calendar year in each of the last three years, all for Crystal Palace (2022 v Bournemouth, 2023 v Brentford, 2024 v Southampton). The only players to achieve this in four years in a row are Dimitar Berbatov (5 from 2007 to 2011) and Harry Kane (2016 to 2019).

• Arsenal’s Eberechi Eze has been involved in five goals in four home Premier League starts against Aston Villa (2 goals, 3 assists), all for former side Crystal Palace between May 2021 and February 2025, registering at least one assist in three of those four starts.

• Ollie Watkins has scored four goals in five away Premier League appearances against Arsenal, the most any Aston Villa player has netted away at the Gunners.