Premier League: Ollie Watkins strikes helps Aston Villa hold Arsenal, Harming title hopes

LONDON: Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins proved a thorn in Arsenal’s side yet again as he completed his side’s comeback with the equaliser in a 2-2 draw that damaged the London club’s Premier League title hopes on Saturday.

Arsenal was on course to erase the memory of last season’s home defeat by Villa — the last time it lost in the league at The Emirates — when Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz scored from close range either side of halftime.

Victory would have put Arsenal back to four points behind leader Liverpool but Villa burst into life when Youri Tielemans headed them a lifeline on the hour and Watkins met a Matty Cash cross with a volley to level eight minutes later.

It set up a frantic finale in which Arsenal thought it had won it when Mikel Merino’s effort deflected off Havertz into the net but it was ruled out for handball against the German.

Arsenal is on 44 points to Liverpool’s 50 having also played one more game. Villa moved up a place to seventh.

It was England striker Watkins who scored a sublime goal in April to seal a 2-0 Villa win that ultimately proved fatal for Arsenal’s hopes of catching Manchester City in the title race.

His goal on Saturday could have an equally damaging impact on Arsenal’s chase of Liverpool and fans of the north London club might be sick of the sight of him.

Watkins has scored six Premier League goals against Arsenal, four of them away. Since he joined Villa in 2020 no visiting player has scored more goals at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal will contest that it scored a late winner when Merino’s volley bounced down and in via a deflection off the arm of Havertz, but it only has itself to blame for allowing two precious points to slip through its fingers. Agencies

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