"Aston Villa's reward for their relentless persistence at Villa Park was a thrilling 2-1 win against the league leaders via a 95th-minute goal from substitute Emiliano Buendía which rattled this famous old stadium to its core. Villa manager Unai Emery jumped in delight. Gunners goalkeeper David Raya kicked the post in frustration. Villa's set-piece coach, Austin MacPhee, waved his crutches in the air in defiance like some sort of "Game of Thrones" re-enactment for outpatients."
"The cheers were no doubt replicated at the Etihad Stadium, where Manchester City were going through their final preparations before facing Sunderland. They subsequently cut the gap to two points with a 3-0 win. Villa, somehow despite not winning a league game until Sept. 28, moved within three points of Arsenal themselves. Chelsea, having looked like we were emerging as genuine challengers when they drew 1-1 with Arsenal a week ago, are now eight points off the pace."
Aston Villa beat Arsenal 2-1 at Villa Park with a 95th-minute Emiliano Buendía goal, prompting ecstatic scenes and Arsenal frustration. Manchester City won 3-0 to reduce Arsenal's lead to two points, while Villa moved within three points despite a slow season start. Chelsea slipped further behind after a 3-1 loss at Leeds and a 0-0 draw at Bournemouth, leaving them eight points adrift. Arsenal have been affected by injuries despite heavy summer recruitment, requiring multiple center-back pairings. Piero Hincapié and Jurrïen Timber were unable to replicate the stability of William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães, and Ben White struggled to sustain consecutive starts.
Read at ESPN.com
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