Aston Villa’s travelling fans could be heard from a pub near the Emirates a few hours before kick-off. There was little anxiety, but rather excitement about what might be.

Including eight straight league wins, Villa had an opportunity to record an unprecedented 12th straight victory in all competitions, breaking records set as recently as 1914.

That was the word that captured Villa’s mood — opportunity.

The onus was on Arsenal to win. Talk of Villa being in a title race was always premature, but due to the significant number of points in the bank within the incredible run of form, they were nestled in a Champions League position — a target that seemed unthinkable not so long ago.

Unai Emery, returning to the Emirates for a third time as Villa manager, viewed things differently. The photo of him, arms outstretched and resting on two red chairs on his unveiling day at Arsenal, still hangs prominently in the Arsenal media suite.

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Every match is of equal importance to him, yet cracks at the club which dented his reputation invariably engender a greater edge, whether he likes to admit it or not. Marching straight down the tunnel at full time following the first defeat at his old club showed just as much, even if he insisted it was because of both the cold and wanting to assess the match immediately with staff.

In the Midlands, Emery’s reputation has been overwhelmingly restored. Villa’s unique selling point is the manager, not any player or wrinkle within the internal structure. Emery is their most influential asset and what he has managed this season may be the greatest performance of his career.

By extension, backing up the 2-1 victory at Stamford Bridge 72 hours earlier by overcoming the team that Emery viewed as the Premier League’s best, did not seem beyond the realms of possibility.

For the first half, such belief did not subside. Villa played on the tension in the air. Home supporters were anxious, reflected by their players.

Emery’s approach was similar to previous years’ visiting the Emirates. Without the ball, he condensed space between the lines, forcing Arsenal to attack in wide areas. On his first league start, Jadon Sancho dropped alongside Lamare Bogarde, who was moonlighting at right-back. Emery rarely wants his full-backs to venture outside the width of the 18-yard box, so he tasks his wide players to track back.

Emery’s gameplan seemed to be working in the first half (Ben Stansall/AFP via Getty Images)

Consequently, Villa often appeared in a 6-3-1 shape. Amadou Onana would drop into the backline to stay goalside of Mikel Merino, while through the pantomime villain of Emiliano Martinez, Villa regularly stymied momentum. In the first half alone, the ball was only in play for 24 minutes.