Late Buendía strike shocks Arsenal as Villa Park roars back to life
6 December 2025
Match recap
Aston Villa beat visitors Arsenal, who sat top of the Premier League, 2-1 on Saturday at Villa Park to open the 15th round of the season.
Villa went ahead first through Matty Cash in the 36th minute, before substitute Leandro Trossard equalised for Arsenal in the 52nd.
Emiliano Buendía struck a stoppage-time winner in the 90+5th minute to keep Villa on course for a dramatic victory.
Opta stats show Arsenal have lost six Premier League games against Villa under Mikel Arteta, the second-most defeats to a single opponent under the Spaniard after seven versus Manchester City.
The data also reveals that Arsenal's loss came in a match where Trossard scored across all competitions for the first time after 26 games without a Gunners win featuring his influence.
Opta added that Villa have won nine of their last ten league games, the first time they have nine wins in ten top-flight matches since December 1919.
In stoppage time, Buendía's strike in 90+5 made Arsenal concede the second-latest goal in the Premier League since 2006-07.
Trossard became the third Arsenal player to be substituted, then score, then substituted in a Premier League match, after Bendtner and Fabregas.
Since Trossard's Arsenal debut in January 2023, no substitute has scored more in the Premier League, with seven goals and three assists to date.
Trossard also joined a group of Belgians to reach 50 Premier League goals, following Lukaku, Benteke, Hazard, and De Bruyne.
Arsenal remain on 33 points, five behind Manchester City, while Villa sit on 30 points in second place, temporarily.
This result leaves the Gunners under pressure ahead of upcoming fixtures as Villa flexes its renewed title-chasing credentials.
Punchlines: If football were stand-up, Villa just dropped the mic on Arsenal. And Arteta's playbook? It says 'Here be goals' but the road is under construction.
