Aston Villa manager Unai Emery explains why he didn’t shake hands with Mikel Arteta after heavy Arsenal defeat – ‘It is simple’

Arsenal are now six points clear of third-placed Villa, but with a nine-point buffer on both Chelsea and Manchester United in fifth and sixth respectively, Emery’s side remain in a strong position to qualify for next season’s UEFA Champions League.

That was far from the mind of the Villa boss, however, at the final whistle in north London.

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Arteta immediately celebrated with his coaching staff, and they formed a huddle to congratulate themselves on a good night’s work.

Emery did not wait for his turn to be acknowledged as he headed immediately down the tunnel after shaking hands with the fourth official. As Arteta walked across the divide, he searched for his predecessor and looked surprised to learn he had not waited on the touchline.

“It is simple,” Emery said when asked about the non-handshake in his post-match press conference.

“You can watch. After I finish the match, my routine is always quick, I shake hands, and I go with my coaches, with my players to the dressing room.

“I was waiting, I was waiting. He was happy, of course he was happy. He was with his coaches. And I decided to go inside. But for me it is no problem.”

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Emery added during his interview with Sky Sports: “Always my routine is go to the opposition coach, shake hands and go inside. If he is not doing the same rule, I can’t wait… it was cold.”

Villa had produced a belated rally during the eight minutes of second-half stoppage time, with Ollie Watkins scoring his third goal of the festive period to wipe Arsenal’s clean sheet.

Watkins’ goal was of little consolation, however, as Villa were blown away by four goals in half an hour after half-time.

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Arteta – who replaced Emery as Arsenal manager in December 2019 – beamed during his post-match media duties, delighting in his side’s ruthlessness after unconvincing recent wins over Wolves, Everton and Brighton.

The indications, on the evidence of the resounding victory against Villa, are that Arsenal can handle the weight of expectation of ending their 22-year wait for a Premier League title – and Arteta played down the significance of Emery’s apparent snub at full-time.

“You saw it, but it’s OK, it’s all good. That is part of the game and it’s not unusual at all,” he said.

Arteta added: “I’m so happy. We play every three days, and today we played an opponent that has won 11 games in a row.

“They are a superb team, very difficult to play against, and we knew that we were going to have periods throughout the game.

“We talked about emotionally how demanding it was going to be and we struggled in the first 10 minutes. Then we adjusted, got a bit more control. We didn’t manage to score and then in the second half we clicked.

“We competed for everything much better. The timing was better and the individual goals were fulfilled in an extraordinary way, and we were so efficient in everything that we did.

“Unlike in the last few games where we had so many big situations, today we were very prolific and accurate to make the difference.”