Arsenal 2-1 Aston Villa: Gunners still perfect in Premier League after Jesus and Martinelli goals

Arsenal maintained their 100% Premier League record with a 2-1 win over Aston Villa on Wednesday night.

A deserved win meant the Gunners remained top of the table with a perfect record, with Gabriel Martinelli settling the game after Douglas Luiz equalized directly from a corner.

Former Arsenal goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez earlier offered Gabriel Jesus the opener as Steven Gerrard's side slipped to a fourth defeat, putting pressure on the former England captain .

For the second consecutive home game, Mikel Arteta's Arsenal showed their cunning to seal the three points after coming from behind to beat Fulham four days earlier.

It was the whole home team in the first half, with Bukayo Saka wanting an early penalty after apparently being dragged to the ground by the returning Tyrone Mings.

A VAR check vindicated referee Robert Jones and no kicks were awarded, much to Saka's annoyance.

Jesus was played over the top by a smart pass from Martin Odegaard, but his weak effort was deflected by Martinez.

It was a pinball in the penalty area from the corner that resulted, with Villa unable to clear their lines and the ball eventually falling on Gabriel Magalhaes, whose shot was deflected behind.

Mings was the last line of defense to block an Odegaard strike, but Villa had too often taken advantage of their luck.

Martinez failed to handle a simple cross shot from Granit Xhaka, pushing the ball straight into the path of Jesus, who made no mistake.

The Argentina international was clearly shaken by the mistake and quickly took the ball out for a corner trying to get it around Saka.

The visitors somehow survived another stampede before Martinez showed just how good he can be, toppling behind an effort from Martinelli when he was at full strength.

He was in the thick of the action at the start of the second half, saving well a free kick from Odegaard before getting into a fight with Jesus.

As Arsenal struggled for the second goal, Gerrard turned to his bench and introduced Philippe Coutinho and Luiz.

The latter was immediately implicated as he whipped in a corner which flew straight in for the equaliser, Aaron Ramsdale this time the offending keeper as his foul cries were turned back by a VAR check.

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It turned out to be just the wake-up call Arsenal needed to shift gears and they were back in the lead just three minutes later.

Martinelli passed to substitute Takehiro Tomiyasu, who released the ball for Saka to pass to the back post where Martinelli had drifted without scoring to score, Martinez again suspicious in the Villa goal.

The hosts saw the rest of the competition with relative ease to extend their winning streak - with Real Madrid, with three wins from three in La Liga, the only other side to boast a perfect start in the five best leagues in Europe.