"A lot of people were saying he shouldn’t get back in the Arsenal team" - Martin Keown reserves special praise for Gunners star despite Villa loss

Arsenal legend Martin Keown has waxed lyrical about Martin Odegaard, hailing the Norwegian for proving a lot of people wrong despite their 2-1 loss against Aston Villa. The two sides locked horns in the Premier League at Villa Park on Saturday, December 6.

Matty Cash broke the deadlock in the 36th minute to hand Villa the lead. However, Leandro Trossard leveled the scores in the 52nd minute to set up a tense finale. Emiliano Buendia proved to be the hero in the fifth minute of stoppage time, scoring the winner to end the Gunners' 18-match unbeaten run.

Despite their loss, Keown named Odegaard as his Player of the Match. The latter played all 90 minutes, completing 57 passes from an attempted 64 (the most in the match with an accuracy of 89 percent). The 26-year-old also created three chances and landed all three of his shots on target, per FotMob.

Keown told TNT Sports (via METRO):

"I’m going for Martin Odegaard. He was out for ages but came in and controlled things in midfield today. He also had two or three really good efforts where he could’ve scored. A lot of people were saying he shouldn’t get back in the Arsenal team with Eze’s form but he’s proved them wrong."

Martin Odegaard has struggled with fitness this season, missing 12 games due to a knee and shoulder injury. He has provided two assists in 11 appearances across all competitions to date.

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"They do look a little bit vulnerable" - David James makes Premier League title prediction after Arsenal lose to Aston Villa

Former Liverpool goalkeeper David James reckons Arsenal remain the favorites to win the Premier League title this season, despite looking vulnerable during their disappointing 2-1 loss against Aston Villa.

While the Gunners have arguably been the best side in England this season, they have dropped points three times in their last five league fixtures. They remain at the top of the table with 33 points from 15 games, two points above Manchester City.

Following Manchester City's 3-0 win over Sunderland yesterday, James told Stadium Astro (via METRO):

"The interesting thing with Man City is they’re capable of losing games themselves at the minute. I don’t think they’re the finished article by any stretch. Erling Haaland is the talisman for them but if you can keep him quiet you’ve got a good chance of stopping Man City. What’s encouraging for the other clubs is when Arsenal do concede, they do look a little bit vulnerable."

He added:

"Villa showed strength, ability and determination and if the other teams can do that they could reduce the gap on Arsenal. But that’s not to say Arsenal aren’t still the favourites."

The Gunners will next face Club Brugge in the UEFA Champions League (December 10) before taking on Wolves in the league on December 13.