Mikel Arteta singles out two ‘powerful' Aston Villa players for praise

The Gunners’ head coach appreciated the directness and willingness displayed by Villa pair Morgan Rogers and Amadou Onana, who both caused trouble for a resilient Arsenal defence.

Unai Emery’s side were defeated 2-0 upon their return to Villa Park but that didn’t stop the likes of Rogers and Onana from making a positive impression. Arsenal were made to work very hard for their three points, ultimately coming out on top narrowly as Villa rued several missed chances.

Arteta, wearing a wide smile in the post-match press conference, was asked about how difficult Rogers and Onana made it for the Gunners to come out on top. “Yes, every time they play at the moment they have and make the space,” the Spanish manager replied.

“As soon as you lose the ball and you are counter-pressing, they break that press. They have a lot of legs, they are really powerful to carry the ball between the centre-backs and full-backs,” Arteta continued.

The speedy adaptation to Emery’s system from Rogers and Onana has been seriously impressive, with the pair now among the first names on the team sheet. It’s not just those associated with Villa that are noticing, with rival managers seemingly taking note.

Rogers, signed from Middlesbrough in January for an initial £8 million, was Villa’s best player on Saturday. The 22-year-old so often dribbled past several Arsenal players with ease and made Thomas Partey and Declan Rice - two of the most physical midfielders in the Premier League - look ordinary.

Onana, meanwhile, is already living up to his £50 million price tag. The Belgium international has slotted into the midfield double pivot excellently and he’s so effective when driving forward with the ball. No wonder Everton, Onana’s former club, are struggling so much without his presence.