LONDON — Unai Emery has dismissed allegations of snubbing Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta after the conclusion of Aston Villa’s match against the Premier League leaders at the Emirates Stadium.
Villa’s impressive 11-game winning streak came to an end on Tuesday night, with Arsenal dominating the second half to secure a 4-1 victory.
Four goals in the second half from Gabriel Magalhães, Martín Zubimendi, Leandro Trossard, and Gabriel Jesus enabled the Gunners to extend their lead to five points at the top of the league table. An added-time goal from Ollie Watkins was merely a consolation for Villa.
The controversy arose shortly after the match, when Emery was observed hurrying down the tunnel without the customary handshake with Arteta.
Asked about the perceived snub, Emery explained: “Yes, but it’s simple. You can see what happened. After the match, my routine is to quickly shake hands and then go with my coaching staff and players or straight to the dressing room. I was waiting, but he was celebrating with his coaches, so I decided to go in. It’s not a problem for me.”
Arteta, who was waiting for Emery by the touchline post-match, downplayed the lack of a handshake, stating, “No, that’s fine. It’s part of the game; not an issue at all.”
This is not the first time Emery has skipped the handshake, having done so after his side’s victory over Arsenal in December 2023 as well.
The loss at the Emirates sees Villa sitting in third place, now six points behind Arsenal. Despite the defeat, Emery found positives in his team’s first-half performance, noting they could have taken the lead. “Football,” he said, reflecting on the second half. “We played wonderfully in the first half, generating chances and defending well. We didn’t concede a corner during that period.”
He continued, “We had a strong start but conceded the first goal in the second half, which was a turning point, especially with [Amadou] Onana’s injury impacting us. Nonetheless, we kept fighting and even managed to score, despite conceding more goals afterward. We had our moments, and we finished the match competitively.”
Aston Villa’s next match is set for Saturday, where they will host Nottingham Forest at Villa Park.