Fans convinced Aston Villa tried and failed to get under Arsenal's skin in the tunnel

Aston Villa flaunted the European Cup ahead of their Premier League clash with Arsenal, prompting fans to suggest they were taunting the Gunners. In a nod to their 1982 victory over Bayern Munich in Rotterdam, Villa placed their European Cup in the tunnel area at Villa Park.

The display, part of a wider behind-the-scenes revamp, coincides with Villa’s return to Europe’s top club competition after securing fourth place last season. While some saw it as a celebration of Villa’s finest hour, others suggested it was a dig at Arsenal, who have never won the European Cup/Champions League, with their 2006 final loss to Barcelona being the closest they’ve come.

Social media reactions were swift after Villa showcased the trophy on social media, with one poster commenting on X (formerly Twitter): “Doing this for a game against Arsenal is such a p***-take.”

Another fan praised the stunt, adding: “Displaying your UCL is sooo nasty… keep up the good work!” A third remarked: “Displaying your UCL like this because you play Arsenal today is a new level of hatred.”

A fourth fan humorously suggested: “Would be so funny if every club that has won the UCL do this when they play Arsenal.” Another quipped: “Omdsssss. Showing them the UCL trophy. Villa are very very petty.” A sixth chimed in, saying: “Doing this against Arsenal is top banter.”

However, it was Arsenal who had the last laugh as they left Villa Park with a 2-0 victory, maintaining their perfect start to the season. The goals came courtesy of Leandro Trossard, who scored with his first touch after being subbed on midway through the second half, and Thomas Partey.

“We found a way to win because the team showed personality and understood the game better and better apart from those 25 minutes in the second half,” Gunners boss Mikel Arteta commented.

“When we needed to rely on certain individuals, we did like when David [Raya] made a good save and when we made the changes, the impact it had was tremendous. When a team starts to be equipped that way and navigates different situations in the match it becomes a team that can win in any place.”

The defeat for Villa marked only the second time Unai Emery has lost to his former employers. Despite the loss, the ex-Gunners boss praised his side’s performance and felt Villa competed well against a team he believes will be title contenders.