David Raya fulfils John Terry ‘points’ destiny as impressive Arsenal leave Sir Alex Ferguson reeling

Arsenal learned not only from their losses to Aston Villa but another setback in their title disappointment. They are good and Sir Alex Ferguson will worry.

When Mikel Arteta pinpointed “efficiency in the box” as the most crucial factor in reversing defeats such as what remains their only one in the Premier League this calendar year, he was almost certainly referring to the sort of moment which fell to Leandro Trossard at Villa Park.

The Belgian buried his first touch as a substitute on the hour into the bottom left corner of Emi Martinez’s goal. There was more than an element of fortune in the opener – it was the one time all game Leon Bailey switched off even slightly defensively, while Bukayo Saka’s cutback only squeezed through after deflections from Kai Havertz and the unwitting and unrelenting Morgan Rogers – but the finish exuded the efficiency of which Arteta spoke so earnestly.

But that was not the pivot on which this revolving door turned for Arsenal; it was not even the same box. Little over ten minutes earlier, David Raya produced a stunning save from Ollie Watkins, who seemed singularly determined to make the worst possible first impression on watching interim England manager Lee Carsley.

It was arguably an easier chance than the one Watkins pulled wide in the first half when Bailey and Rogers combined to provide him with a free hit basically on the penalty spot. That at least felt like less of a momentum shift: it was Villa’s first shot and the nature of the game suggested there would be many more when Arsenal’s early ascendancy waned.

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When Watkins pounced on Amadou Onana’s effort as it deflected wildly, came back off the crossbar and left Raya stranded with no defender in sight, it marked the start of Villa’s superiority. They had 11 shots all game and five between the 54th and 61st – an eight-minute span in which the Arsenal keeper’s only save was that granite wrist which kept out Watkins’ diving header despite Raya being behind his line when the striker made contact.

Villa remained on top for a little while thereafter but that was their grand opportunity; Trossard scored soon after and Thomas Partey reinforced a lead Arsenal never looked likely to relinquish.

It felt like Raya’s first significant breakthrough for Arsenal in the Premier League. The Spaniard had been the difference in the Champions League and proved his critics wrong long ago but was yet to have his properly defined Petr Cech moment, the sort of input which John Terry really weirdly and entirely incorrectly once said would be worth “12 or 15 points a season” to Arsenal when they signed his former Chelsea teammate in June 2015. That was Raya turning a possible defeat or draw – two damaging results this early in a title challenge – into a statement victory.

It bore the hallmarks of April’s reverse fixture, which Arteta blamed in part for Arsenal’s runners-up medal last season. That was the match he cited as underlining the need for “efficiency in the box”, a game they “should win, but we don’t”. The team with the fewest shots emerged victorious again, and through late goals underpinned by ludicrously determined defending.

There was plenty of the visit to St James’ Park in November, too: a difficult, intense and energetic opponent, powered by a raucous home crowd roaring for each and every decision, with each and every player starved of space. There was even some wonderfully petty but wholly necessary lighting of blue touchpaper, when John McGinn hammered the ball into the downed William Saliba’s mid-section and Benjamin White returned with an immediate receipt likely aimed at the Scot’s head. Sir Alex Ferguson accused players of attempted murder for less.

Having let that game against Newcastle slip from their grasp after falling into the trap of feeding the home frenzy, Arteta’s side rode a wave at Villa Park which might have previously suffocated them.

Arsenal know they have to improve on a historic personal best 89-point season to win the title. Not only did they avenge one of their few defeats, they learned from the painful lessons of another. The Gunners have long been a different beast to the one which remains mischaracterised by large portions of the punditocracy. On the impressive early evidence they have evolved once again.

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