Arsenal 0-2 Aston Villa: Two late second-half goals sees Villa deal massive blow to Gunners title ambitions

Arsenal lost their grip on the Premier League title race following a 2-0 defeat at the Emirates Stadium by Aston Villa, putting an end to the Gunners' five-game winning streak at home in the league.

Both teams entered the match with high spirits after seeing other teams around them in the table drop points earlier in the weekend. Arsenal aimed to reclaim the top spot, and they had early opportunities with Kai Havertz posing a threat.

Initially, the German's shot at the near post was saved by Emiliano Martinez, followed by creating space in the box for Gabriel Jesus to head the ball freely at the back post. However, the Brazilian missed the target after a pass from Bukayo Saka.

Saka himself failed to keep his shot on target after receiving a brilliant pass from Martin Odegaard, hitting the side netting despite being Arsenal's top scorer this season.

While Villa struggled for large parts of the first half, Arsenal couldn't capitalize on their dominance, allowing Unai Emery's side to create chances on the counter-attack. Ollie Watkins came close to scoring, but his shot hit the inside of the post.

Leandro Trossard had the best opportunity of the half when Jesus crossed the ball into the box, but the Belgian was denied by Martinez, the former Arsenal goalkeeper.

Following the restart, Arsenal found themselves outplayed, as Villa strung together sequences of possession. The change in momentum was palpable to the home support, who did their best to rally behind the hosts.

However, the fans were nearly left in shock when Oleksandr Zinchenko was dispossessed in his own box, leading to Youri Tielemans unleashing a powerful shot that struck the crossbar and post.

In an effort to regain control of the game, Mikel Arteta made substitutions from the bench. Despite the changes, it was Villa who managed to find the breakthrough in the 84th minute.

The Gunners failed to clear a corner, allowing Lucas Digne to deliver a ball across the goal that evaded the Arsenal defense. Leon Bailey capitalized on the opportunity, scoring from a tight angle at the back post.

Minutes later, Villa sealed the victory with a swift counterattack from an Arsenal corner. Ollie Watkins broke forward and skillfully chipped the ball over David Raya, securing three crucial points for Villa in the race for a top-four finish and impacting the landscape of the title race.

With this win, Villa now sit three points ahead of Tottenham, while Arsenal remain in second place, trailing league leaders and defending champions Manchester City by two points.