Mikel Arteta could now copy what Arsene Wenger did 13 years ago after Arsenal beat Aston Villa
Arsenal were made to work hard but still managed to secure the three points against Aston Villa.
It was a terrible first half from the Premier League champions, but whatever Mikel Arteta said at the break seemed to work as they looked a lot better in the second period.
Bukayo Saka scored the only goal of the game in the 59th minute to help his side beat Villa and continue their great start to the season.
Mikel Arteta was a happy man after the game, but his focus now shifts to transfer deadline day, where Arsenal look to strengthen their attack.
The Spaniard has a chance to repeat what Arsene Wenger did many years ago.
Mikel Arteta could repeat Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal transfer deadline day move in 2013
Transfer deadline days are always an interesting watch, and Wenger was in charge for many of them throughout his time at Arsenal.
The legendary Frenchman made several signings on the final day of the transfer window – even Arteta was signed on deadline day.
The most popular deadline day signing, though, has to be Mesut Ozil in 2013.
Arsenal had just won a hard-fought game against Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 in the North London Derby and went into the final day looking for a statement signing.
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That is eerily similar to tonight.
The Gunners have just picked up a narrow 1-0 win against Aston Villa and are going into deadline day with the hope of making a marquee signing.
Wenger was able to get one of the best players in Madrid at the time in Ozil. Arsenal fans will hope that Arteta can do the same with Julian Alvarez on deadline day.
If it happens, it would be a real statement.
Mikel Arteta responds to Julian Alvarez transfer question after Arsenal beat Aston Villa
Arteta was delighted with the win against Aston Villa at Villa Park.
The Arsenal manager knows how difficult it is to beat Emery’s side in their own backyard, and now that three points are in the bag, they won’t have to worry about this fixture anymore.
After the game, Arteta faced the media, and unsurprisingly, one of the questions was about transfer deadline day.
Mikel Arteta keeping his cards close to his chest over any updates on Julian Alvarez 🤐 pic.twitter.com/yb4yhnDuko
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) August 31, 2026
The Spaniard let out a smile before the Sky Sports reporter even finished her question, somewhat similar to Wenger’s now-infamous smile the day before he signed Ozil.
Arteta said: “I don’t know. I’ve been disconnected for a day because I don’t want anything related to that. My focus has to be on the game. We have the right people at the club to look after that.”
Then, when he was directly asked about Alvarez, he replied: “I don’t know. That’s for the people upstairs.”
