It’s been a fantastic week for Arsenal who extended their lead at the top of the Premier League following a thrilling 4-3 victory over Luton Town before a huge result went their way on Wednesday.
Manchester City’s troubling spell continued as they slipped to a 1-0 defeat against Aston Villa thanks to Leon Bailey’s deflected second-half strike.
That loss has left the champions six points behind Arsenal, though the fixtures continue to come thick and fast for the Gunners.
On Saturday night, Mikel Arteta’s troops travel to Aston Villa intending to send out another statement of intent to their title rivals.
Coming away with all three points, however, looks like a difficult ask. Villa’s impressive win over City was their 14th consecutive victory on home soil and Unai Emery has transformed Villa Park into a fortress.
And if the Gunners are to spoil their winning run, they’ll have to do it without defender Takehiro Tomiyasu after Arteta found out the extent of his calf injury.
Arsenal without five first-team players ahead of Aston Villa clash
Tomiyasu has been plagued with problems since arriving at the Emirates Stadium and just when it looked like he was hitting form having been hailed as a “real menace” against RC Lens, the Japanese international sustained an injury in the 2-1 victory over Wolves.
Although Arteta took him off as a precaution, the 25-year-old missed the dramatic win over Luton and now faces four to six weeks on the sidelines.
With Jurrien Timber still recovering from an anterior cruciate ligament injury that he sustained on his Premier League debut in August, the injury to versatile defender Tomiyasu leaves Arsenal light on options in the full-back area.
The Gunners are entering a typically busy festive period with Ben White and Cedric Soares as options at right-back while Oleksandr Zinchenko and Jakub Kiwior are battling for a spot on the other flank.
Tomiyasu joins Timber and midfielders Emile Smith-Rowe, Thomas Partey and Fabio Vieira on the injury table.
Arsenal were also dealt with a significant suspension blow ahead of this clash as Arteta picked up his third yellow card of the season – allegedly for “excessively celebrating” Rice’s injury-time winner – meaning they will be without the Spanish tactician on the touchline this weekend.
That said, it still promises to be a blockbuster fixture between two attacking sides and the Gunners will aim to fire themselves further clear of the chasing pack by ending Villa’s remarkable home record.
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