Premier League leaders Arsenal host third-place Aston Villa on Tuesday in a vital match in the title race.

Unai Emery’s side, who are just three points behind the London club in the table, are in sensational form and a victory at the Emirates Stadium would be their 12th in a row in all competitions.

The sides have already played this month, with Villa winning 2-1 at home on December 6 thanks to Emiliano Buendia’s late strike.

Here, Dan Sheldon — one of The Athletic’s Arsenal writers — and Aston Villa correspondent Jacob Tanswell discuss the key talking points ahead of the game, which kicks off at 8.15pm UK time (3.15pm ET).

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Is this the biggest game of the season so far for your team and how important is it to the title race?

Sheldon: With Manchester City hitting their groove — winning six Premier League games on the bounce — and closing the gap to Arsenal at the top of the table to just two points, every game is going to be crucial for Mikel Arteta’s side.

In that context, yes, it is the biggest game of Arsenal’s campaign to date; but you could say the same for every match between now and May.

Tanswell: Not from a Villa standpoint. If anything, there isn’t lots of pressure on Emery’s side due to their eight consecutive league wins. They are comfortably in the Champions League places and the pressure is on Arsenal to deliver.

How is Emery seen by your club’s fans?

Sheldon: Despite reaching a Europa League final — they lost 4-1 to Chelsea — in his first season in 2018-19, you could either view his time at Arsenal as a failure or make the case that being the first manager to fill Arsene Wenger’s shoes was always going to be a difficult task.

There is no denying Emery’s quality, as he has gone on to prove time and time again since, but there is still a sense of frustration among Arsenal fans regarding the revisionist coverage of his spell at the club whenever the Spaniard goes on a good run.

Emery managing Arsenal in 2018 (ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Tanswell: A god, a deity, a higher power… call him what you will, Villa supporters are enthralled by him. As one senior figure told The Athletic earlier this month, he has “the keys to the city”. Emery has lifted the club from relegation candidates when he took over in the autumn of 2022 to qualifying for European competition in three successive seasons and now, despite a terrible summer and heavy financial restrictions, they are in an excellent position to return to the Champions League (after playing in it in 2024-25).

What are your club’s main weaknesses/concerns heading into this game?

Sheldon: If you put Viktor Gyokeres’ goalscoring issues to one side, Arteta’s biggest headache will be the defensive injuries that have ripped through his squad. Gabriel making his return was a much-needed boost, yet it was offset by Arteta losing , resulting in Declan Rice playing at right-back.