Arsenal has won four straight games after defeating Fulham at home 2-1 on Saturday.
When Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal hosts Steven Gerrard’s Aston Villa at home on Wednesday, it will be looking to keep up its undefeated start to the year.
After the victory over Fulham, Arteta said he was pleased with the performances that had led to Arsenal’s best start to a Premier League season since 2004-05.
“The way we are playing, what we transmit as a team and then getting that into winning football matches — there’s the reason why we are where we are,” Arteta said.
“There is still a lot to improve. There is room individually and collectively in many areas that we have to do.”
The 15th-placed Villa, which will be seeking its second victory of the season, will present a challenging opponent, according to the Spaniard.
“I watch the teams and how physical they (Villa) are,” Arteta said. “Every game here is a battle for everybody, and we don’t expect anything different.
“Villa are a top team, they have a big squad, top quality players and a good manager, and we expect a difficult game again on Wednesday.”
Oleksandr Zinchenko of Ukraine will not be playing for Arsenal, and Thomas Partey of Ghana won’t either because of the ongoing knee and thigh problems. respectively.
“We still have to make another scan, especially on Thomas, to see the length (of absence) but I don’t think they’ll be available. It’s a similar area (to the one that kept Partey out last season), but hopefully not as bad,” Arteta said.