The impact of Arsenal’s defeat to Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon means Manchester City look nailed on to win the Premier League with six left to play – with Arsenal far from their best against Aston Villa.
Unai Emery reminded Arsenal fans that he was not the problem for his difficult time in charge when he replaced Arsene Wenger, by proving once again he is a top-level gaffer. Tactically, Villa were sensational.
They repelled Arsenal at The Emirates, despite having played two days after Arsenal in the Conference League. While Emi Martinez stopped Leandro Trossard, Villa arguably deserved their late 2-0 victory.
Goals from Leon Bailey and Ollie Watkins saw Villa win 2-0, taking Emery’s men back into the top four after Spurs had suffered a heavy 4-0 loss at Newcastle. They had hit the woodwork twice, beforehand.
Owen Hargreaves thinks Declan Rice looked tired on Sunday
Arsenal looked unusually leggy, perhaps the effect of playing against Bayern Munich on Tuesday night – albeit, 48 hours before Villa had beaten French side Lille. Declan Rice was certainly, far from his best.
Speaking on The Kelly And Wrighty Show, Owen Hargreaves said he noticed 25-year-old Arsenal star Declan Rice looking tired and less effective than normal – highlighting Arsenal’s lack of quality depth.
“I don’t think they have the depth over a 38-game season to compete with City. These crucial moments, you need to rotate. Declan Rice has been amazing but he looked tired against a really good Aston Villa.”
Ian Wright agreed with Hargreaves verdict on Arsenal’s Rice
On his own podcast, Wright said Rice looked as “weary” as he had ever seen him in an Arsenal shirt. Playing in the Champions League for the first time is taking it out of the former West Ham captain.
Sunday saw Rice clock up his 51st appearance of the season, for club and country. The turnaround is quick once again, with Arsenal in action in Germany on Wednesday night, the second leg against Bayern.
Rice needs to find some energy stores from somewhere at this late stage in the season, when it matters the most. The England star also has to tend with Euro 2024 this summer. It is not going to get any easier.
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