Emery Denies Ignoring Arteta after Aston Villa's Defeat to Arsenal

Unai Emery does not want to exaggerate the incident of not shaking hands with Mikel Arteta after the Arsenal vs Aston Villa match (Instagram/@unaiemery_).

JAKARTA - Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has denied claims he snubbed Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta after the final whistle of the English League match at the Emirates Stadium.

Aston Villa's 11-game winning streak was interrupted on Wednesday, December 31, 2025, early in the morning WIB, after being beaten by Arsenal with a score of 1-4.

Four second-half goals from Gabriel Magalhaes, Martin Zubimendi, Leandro Trossard, and Gabriel Jesus put the Gunners five points clear at the top of the table from Manchester City.

Ollie Watkins scored an equaliser in injury time, but it was not enough to help the Villans.

Immediately after the match, the public was shocked by the incident when Emery was seen rushing to the tunnel without shaking hands with Arteta, as is customary between managers after the game.

However, at the post-match press conference, Emery cleared up the incident and insisted there was no need to blow it out of proportion.

"Yes, but it's simple. You can watch it. After (the game) my routine is always quick, shaking hands and going with my coach, with my players, or going to the locker room."

"I waited, I waited. Of course, he was happy and he was with his coach. I decided to go in. However, for me, it doesn't matter," said Emery.

While Arteta was seen waiting for Emery on the sidelines after the game, he also agreed with his compatriot that the lack of a handshake was not a problem.

"No, it's fine. It's part of the game, it's not a problem at all," Arteta told a news conference.

Emery also has not shaken hands with Arteta after his team's victory over Arsenal in December 2023.

Meanwhile, the defeat at the Emirates leaves Aston Villa in third place, six points behind leaders Arsenal.

Regardless of the manner of defeat, Emery was optimistic about his team's performance. They were clearly superior in the first half and could have been ahead at the break.

"Football. We played fantastic in the first half and we got momentum, created chances, corner kicks."

"We defended very well when needed. We didn't concede a corner kick in the first half."

"They had one or two chances, but we were playing against a team that (was better) in the league, how they performed here, how they interacted with the supporters."

"Then we felt comfortable. In the second half, we conceded the first goal. We conceded the second goal, maybe also the injury (Amadou) Onana didn't help us because he is important for us in the midfield."

"Then we didn't give up and kept trying to compete like we did. We conceded two more goals."

"Then even for me, we didn't give up and we scored one goal. We had another chance and we finished the game," said Emery.

Aston Villa will next be in action on Saturday, January 3, 2026, when they host Nottingham Forest at Villa Park.