When Aston Villa went into the Premier League without a win in five games, they looked more likely to be relegation candidates than title contenders.
Manager Unai Emery described his players as “lazy”. Villa’s big names, including England players Ollie Watkins and Morgan Rodgers, were not showing any form. There was great concern over the club’s lack of activity in the summer transfer window.
So how do we explain Villa’s position heading into the final game in 2026?
With 11 consecutive wins in all competitions, Villa have their best winning streak in over a century and are seen as legitimate challengers for the Premier League title.
Indeed, if Villa defeat leaders Arsenal on Tuesday, they will be level on points with league leaders the Gunners at midway through the season. They and Manchester City are now three points behind after 18 of 38 games, with Liverpool in fourth place, a further seven points behind.
And Villa will have no fear of Arsenal. After all, just three weeks ago, Villa scored the last goal. They continued their winning streak by defeating the leaders 2-1 at home. That continued on Saturday, when Watkins’ two second-half goals led to a 2-1 come-from-behind victory over fifth-placed Chelsea.
Much of the team’s success is due to Spanish manager Emery, whose tactical savvy, well-timed substitutions and trust in his players mean no challenge is insurmountable.
Like at Stamford Bridge at the weekend, before Watkins came off the bench, when Villa were outnumbered and outmatched. Or when Villa fell behind twice en route to a 3-2 win against West Ham two weeks ago. Or when Villa lost 2-0 against Brighton on December 3, but fought back to win 4-3. Two weeks earlier, Villa conceded an early goal against Leeds but came back to win 2-1.
That means Villa will be looking for a sixth consecutive away win as they travel to the Emirates Stadium, where Arsenal have not lost in any competition this season and have 25 of their 27 points in the Premier League.
This game could be seen as as much a test of Arsenal’s title credentials as Villa’s.
Former Arsenal manager Emery said on Saturday when asked if his team could remain in the title race: “Not really.”
Three days later, when Villa (most recently England champions in 1981) win again, no one will believe him.
major matches
City, who are two points behind second-placed Arsenal, do not play until Thursday, when Pep Guardiola’s side travel to Sunderland, where their eight-match winning streak continues.
Liverpool remain completely unconvinced and are aiming for a fifth successive win when they face Leeds at home, also on Thursday.
On Tuesday, fifth-placed Chelsea host Bournemouth, while sixth-placed Manchester United host bottom-placed Wolverhampton, who are still winless after 18 games in what has been their worst start to the Premier League in history.
Featured players
dominic calvert lewin He has scored in each of his last six games for Leeds, making it the highest scoring tally of his career heading into Anfield to face Liverpool. The English prospect still has a way to go to equal Jamie Vardy’s Premier League record of 11 consecutive games on points since 2015, when Leicester won the title in an astonishing way.
Rayan Cherki quickly established himself in English football after joining Manchester City from Lyon in the summer, scoring one goal and providing seven assists, the most in the Premier League, before scoring the winning goal against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
Activity suspended
Arsenal had defensive problems heading into the game against Villa, with right-backs Julian Timber and Ben White, left-back Riccardo Calafioli and centre-back Cristian Mosquera all absent, as they won 2-1 at Brighton on Saturday. In this match, midfielder Declan Rice was forced to come on as an emergency right-back.
Mason Mount had hoped his injury problems would be resolved after he finally settled into the Man United squad. However, Mount was forced off with an unspecified injury in Friday’s 1-0 win against Newcastle and is undergoing tests ahead of Wolves’ trip to Old Trafford.
off the field
The January transfer window is about to open, and Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo will be at the heart of it.
The Ghanaian international has been linked with most of the Premier League’s top teams, but Manchester City appear to be in the best position to sign him.
Sky Sports reported on Monday that City had begun talks with Bournemouth over the signing of Semenyo, who has a release clause of £65 million ($87 million).
This means Semenyo’s trip to Chelsea could be his final game for Bournemouth, where he has scored nine league goals this season.
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AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
