Arsenal substitute Leandro Trossard makes Aston Villa pay a wasted amount | Premier League

A couple of games into the season, Mikel Arteta must be feeling as though this could really be his year. Arteta knew his side were lucky when Ollie Watkins missed a goal in each half and Arsenal had just seen another goal. Aston Villa The chance was wasted. Arteta then brought on Leandro Trossard, the quiet king of big goals, and the substitute scored with his first touch to pave the way for a stunning victory. “Trossard again, ole ole,” chanted the away fans, a nod to the Belgian’s timely interventions against Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Manchester City and Wolves last season.

Thomas Partey doubled Arsenal's lead with a shot from the edge of Villa's 18-yard box and, while it was no walk in the park, Arteta's side could have won by a bigger margin. Martin Ødegaard, the Arsenal Arsenal captain Villa missed the chance to score a third goal in the 80th minute, seconds after Ricardo Calafiori, a summer signing from Bologna, had made his debut. Last season, Villa ended Arsenal's title hopes by beating them home and away, but this time they emerged victorious.

“All aboard!” The strains of Ozzy Osbourne’s Crazy Train marked the start of another season at Villa Park and it promises to be an exciting one, with at least four Champions League games guaranteed to be played here. Unai Emery has always maintained the Premier League The bigger competition, however, is last season's and the visit of Arsenal, last season's runners-up and supposed title contenders again this season, provided an early barometer of Villa's credentials. Emery had said such games would determine whether they can improve on fourth place this season.

The first half was not full of quality, but it was entertaining, with some clashes in the 34th minute after William Saliba got too close to Watkins at the corner flag, prompting referee Michael Oliver to intervene. What happened next was entertaining, if not petulant. Saliba came out on top, but John McGinn kicked the ball straight at the Arsenal defender, who at least managed to disguise it as a clearance. Ben White didn't like McGinn's evasion of Saliba and was quick to kick the ball straight at McGinn, sparking a scuffle.

Moments earlier, Villa winger Leon Bailey had cleared the ball from the edge of the Villa penalty area after Kai Havertz, with his right foot, had made a left-handed pass into the box in a rare opportunity. Havertz sent a shot wide under pressure from Pau Torres and earlier hit the bar from a corner, although the referee had given a slight foul on Emiliano Martinez. The corner came after a superb right-footed save from former Arsenal goalkeeper Martinez, who palmed Bukayo Saka's left-footed shot wide of the right-hand post, prompting two-fisted celebrations and high-fives from his team-mates. A minute later, a visibly upset Matty Cash was forced off with an apparent ankle injury, while 18-year-old January signing Kosta Nedeljkovic was tasked with taming Gabriel Martinelli.

The clearest chance of the first half came at the other end when Watkins headed wide first time after Oliver had waved play on. Bailey stole the ball from Arsenal defender Gabriel and the impressive Morgan Rogers passed to Watkins, who came into the area close to the penalty spot, but he opted to take the ball with his right foot when his left seemed the better option and his shot went wide.

Rogers got past five Arsenal players in black shirts as the break approached and whipped in an inviting cross into the box, but the alert David Raya extinguished the danger. Rogers was certainly one of those who caught the eye of England interim manager Lee Carsley, the former Birmingham City midfielder who could be forgiven for wanting to fly under the radar. Whether White declares himself available for selection in the post-Southgate era remains to be seen.

Watkins will wonder how he got away in the 65th minute without scoring. After Amadou Onana’s side-footed shot deflected off Gabriel and over Raya onto the bar, Watkins was in the six-yard box to tap in the rebound. But the England striker’s header was too close to the goalkeeper and lacked conviction. Raya deserves credit for repelling Watkins’ shot with a left-footed save, but Watkins should have rattled the net, by whatever means. Emery put his hands on his head, Raya gestured for him to calm down. It was easy for him to say. Villa kept pressing, Rogers went close after another excellent run and later Ezri Konsa did.

Arsenal didn’t give up either. Arteta brought on Trossard for Martinelli and two minutes later his team-mates were mobbing him. Saka sent the ball back from the goal-line, Rogers and Havertz contested the ball and it found its way to Trossard, who fired into the bottom corner. Partey secured the win, his shot, also a first-timer, too powerful for Martinez to stop with his left glove. Saka was again the provider, poking the ball inside for Partey. The travelling Arsenal fans went wild. Even at this start to the season, this victory, though not perfect, felt like a significant achievement.