Aston Villa v Arsenal: Premier League – live | Premier League

Key events

A glimpse inside the Arsenal dressing-room reveals they will be wearing their Lynx Africa tribute kit this evening. Photograph: Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC/Getty Images

Mikel Arteta: “I don’t take things personally”

Arsenal: The Arsenal manager would love to get one over Unai Emery after last season’s losses proved catastrophic for their title hopes, writes Ed Aarons.

Today’s match officials

Referee: Michael Oliver.
Assistants: Stuart Burt and Dan Cook.
Fourth official: Darren England.
VAR: Peter Bankes.
Assistant VAR: Eddie Smart.

Michael Oliver is in charge of maintaining order at Villa Park this evening. Photograph: Michael Zemanek/REX/Shutterstock

Emiliano Martinez: “I’m just a normal guy”

Interview: The Aston Villa goalkeeper on his on-pitch persona, competing in the Champions League and facing former club Arsenal. Desperately trying not to laugh while the Argentinian innocently denies being a master of the dark arts: Ben Fisher.

Those teams: Unai Emery fields the same 11 players who started against West Ham last weekend, despite Jhon Duran’s goalscoring contribution from the bench. The Colombian striker was always unlikely to displace Ollie Watkins and will almost certainly have to settle for cameos as long as Villa’s first choice striker is fit.

Mikel Arteta makes just one change to the side that beat Wolves, bringing in Jurrien Timber for Oleksandr Zinchenko at left-back. Gabirel Jesus is not in today’s match day squad after picking up a minor groin injury. Eddie Nketiah, who has been linked with a £30m move to Nottingham Forest, is among the substitutes.

Kai Havertz makes his way into Villa Park after alighting from the Arsenal team bus. Photograph: Peter Powell/Reuters

Aston Villa v Arsenal line-ups

Aston Villa: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne, Onana, Tielemans, McGinn, Bailey, Rogers, Watkins.

Subs: Gauci, Diego Carlos, Maatsen, Nedeljkovic, Barkley, Buendia, Jaden, Ramsey, Duran.

Arsenal: Raya, White, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber, Partey, Rice, Odegaard, Saka, Martinelli, Havertz.

Subs: Ramsdale, Zinchenko, Kiwior, Calafiori, Jorginho, Nelson, Nwaneri, Trossard, Nketiah.

⚫️ 🔴

💪 Timber starts at the back
⚖️ Rice features in the middle
⚡️ Saka out wide

Ready to work – COME ON YOU GUNNERS!

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) August 24, 2024

Early team news

Tyrone Mings is back on the training ground grass over a year after suffering last season’s opening-day knee injury that has kept him sidelined since. Having missed pre-season, the central defender is not expected to return to action until some time next month. Villa midfielder Boubacar Kamara is also out with a similar injury he suffered in February but is obviously way further behind in his recovery.

Arsenal defenders Kieran Tierney and Takehiro Tomiyasu remain sidelined, while midfielder Fabio Vieira is back in full training after recovering from a groin injury but is unlikely to make today’s squad.

Tyrone Mings is back in full training after recovering from the knee injury that forced him to miss all but the opening six minutes of last season. Photograph: Owen Humphreys/PA

Premier League: Aston Villa v Arsenal

Arsenal travel to Villa Park to face what could be an extremely tough assignment against a team that beat them at home and away last season, doing their title chances irreparable harm in the process. Both sides kicked off the current campaign with victories, with Arsenal seeing off Wolves at the Emirates shortly before Villa beat West Ham at the London Stadium.

Despite their obvious superiority, neither team’s wins were hugely convincing and both Emery and Mikel Arteta will be hoping to see better performances from their respective teams this evening. Kick-off at Villa Park is at 5.30pm (BST) but feel free to stick around for team news and build-up.

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