Arsenal suffered their first defeat since August as they were beaten by Aston Villa.
Emi Buendia struck a last-gasp winner as Villa closed Arsenal’s lead at the top of the Premier League to three points.
The Gunners had looked on course to leave the Midlands with a draw, after Leandro Trossard had cancelled out Matty Cash’s opener.
But Buendia scored with virtually the last kick of the game to claim a famous win for Villa and slow Arsenal’s title charge.
Standard Sport’s Simon Collings picks out three key talking points from a thriller at Villa Park…
Buendia blows title race wide open
The ball hit the back of the net, and the Arsenal players hit the floor. Villa Park burst into life - and so, now, has the title race.
It was a brutal end to the game for Arsenal, who had looked on course to claim what would have been a valuable, battling point.
The Gunners were not at their best for large parts, but they had dug in. Buendia’s goal, however, broke their hearts and, on the balance of play, it was no more than Villa deserved.
Arsenal had been under pressure for the final 15 minutes, looking tired and far more ragged than they have at other times this season.
When the dam finally broke, it was with the last move of the game, and it summed up how Arsenal were hanging on.
David Raya made a save, Jurrien Timber two blocks, but it was in vain as the ball fell to Buendia and he curled it home.
Injuries finally take their toll
Context is key, and this was a match where Arsenal really felt the impact of their injuries in defence.
This season is only 22 games old for Arsenal, but already they have used six different centre-back partnerships.
Injuries have hit the Gunners hard at the back, so much so that Marli Salmon - who only turned 16 in August - was on the bench on Saturday.
Arsenal are currently without centre-backs Cristhian Mosquera, Gabriel and William Saliba due to injury, so Timber was forced to move from right-back to the heart of defence.
The Dutchman was deployed alongside Piero Hincapie and put in a solid performance, while Hincapie was fine, too. But, simply put, they are not Gabriel and Saliba. No one in Europe is.
Arsenal missed the assurance they bring and the sooner they can have one - if not both - of them back, the better.
Odegaard and Saka show signs of promise
If there was a positive for Arsenal to take home from Villa Park, it was the way their right flank caused problems.
Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard have, in the past, been Arsenal’s biggest weapons in attack, but injuries have prevented them from combining this season.
However, the pair rekindled their partnership on Saturday, and the way they linked up was a crumb of comfort for Arteta.
Even in a poor first half, Odegaard and Saka still looked lively, and it was the latter who created Eberechi Eze’s disallowed goal.
They created Arsenal’s actual goal, too. Declan Rice won the ball in midfield and gave it to Odegaard.
The Norwegian drove down the right before he set Saka in behind with a perfectly-weighted pass.
Saka’s cross made it all the way to Trossard at the back post, and the Belgian made no mistake.
It sparked hope of an Arsenal comeback, which ended in heartbreak.
