Arteta reaction speaks volumes as Arsenal boss watches Villa loss from stands
In pictures: Aston Villa v Arsenal
Arsenal suffered a painful defeat at the hands of Aston Villa on Saturday, and Mikel Arteta’s reaction was telling. The Spaniard, who is in the thick of a Premier League title race with Liverpool, Manchester City and perhaps even Villa themselves, opted not to stay in his seat until the final whistle and stormed off back to the dressing room ahead of schedule.
The Gunners had the opportunity to capitalise in the West Midlands after bagging a last-minute winner against Luton Town in midweek and watching City fall to a 1-0 defeat at Villa Park.
Arteta was forced to watch on from the stands, having picked up his third yellow card of the campaign at Kenilworth Road. And it wasn’t an easy watch for the manager, with John McGinn’s early strike putting Arsenal on the back foot from the word go.
The visitors probed throughout the second half without finding an answer; even if it looked as though Kai Havertz, who was subsequently penalised for a handball, had scrambled home an equaliser in the 90th minute.
As full-time approached, Arteta didn’t even wait to hear the referee’s final whistle. Instead, the 41-year-old hopped out of his seat and headed straight for the door – a reaction which speaks volumes about the scale of the chance Arsenal passed up.
A win would have catapulted them back to the top of the Premier League table, eight points ahead of reigning champions Man City, albeit having played one game more. However, a draw leaves them in second spot, one point behind Liverpool and only one ahead of third-place Villa.
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