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BIRMINGHAM: Arsenal suffered a second consecutive loss in the Premier League when Ollie Watkins’ early goal led Aston Villa to a 1-0 victory on Saturday.
Mikel Arteta’s team fell behind after just 74 seconds at Villa Park and couldn’t muster a convincing response.
Arsenal lost to Wolves on Tuesday and are now in three league games without a win.
The Gunners languish in 10th place, nine points behind the top four, as their feeble hopes of qualifying for the Champions League seem less realistic every day.
When Arsenal took on Villa in November, they suffered a lackluster 3-0 loss that sent them sliding into the relegation zone.
Although Arsenal had managed to make their way back up the table, eighth-ranked Villa once again showed the flaws that still plague Arteta’s men.
Arsenal, who are completely lacking in the vanguard, have scored only once in their last three games and retain a fatal inability to stay focused at the rear.
Villa took the lead with his first Premier League goal since 2014, helped by a woeful Gunners defense.
Arsenal’s Cedric Soares gave the ball and Bertrand Traore crossed to Watkins, who had not scored, whose shot went in through a deflection by Rob Holding.
When Villa defender Ezri Konsa and Arsenal striker Alexandre Lacazette butted heads, it looked like the Premier League’s new concussion substitution rule could be used for the first time, but the pair were finally able to keep playing.
Former Arsenal goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez made a magnificent save to keep Villa ahead when he flipped Granit Xhaka’s free kick, with Holding a header deflected from the resulting corner.
With Bernd Leno suspended, Mat Ryan was making his first appearance in goal for Arsenal after signing on loan from Brighton.
Ryan did well to keep Traore’s short-range chip out before Gabriel blocked Ross Barkley’s follow-up effort.
Villa had won 10 of the 11 league games in which he had scored the first goal this season.
They were back on top early in the second half and Ryan saved John McGinn’s blast.
Barkley fired little more after a good run from Jack Grealish opened up Arsenal’s defense.
Returning to the squad for the second game in a row after his mother’s illness, Arsenal captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang came off the bench with 30 minutes to go.
The Gabon forward was unable to convert Nicolás Pepe’s center when Martínez passed him with an outstretched hand.
Pepe was Arsenal’s only bright spark and the Ivorian’s low blow forced Martinez to save with his feet.
Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard came on as a substitute and wasted one last chance to equalize when the Real Madrid midfielder on loan crashed from the edge of the area.
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