U18s: Arsenal 4-2 Aston Villa

Aston Villa let a two-goal lead slip away as they suffered a defeat at the hands of Arsenal in the Under-18 Premier League.

A perfect start in north London saw Bradley Burrows and Cole Brannigan score in the space of two minutes.

Michal Rosiak pulled one back for the Gunners from the penalty spot before Louie Copley brought them level in first half stoppage time.

A lively start to the second half saw Villa miss a spot kick of their own before Louis Zecevic-John made it 3-2 shortly after, with Chido Obi-Martin netting a fourth in the final minutes.

The visiting Villans began the match in confident fashion and were celebrating the opening goal on 13 minutes when Burrows pounced on a loose ball that had been spilled by ‘keeper Owen Asemota.

A second goal followed swiftly from the resulting kick-off as Asemota got tangled up with one of his defenders, allowing Brannigan to steal in and slot into an empty net.

Arsenal were given the chance to gain a foothold in the match when Zecevic-John was brought down in the box, and Rosiak made no mistake from the spot, slamming his penalty past Sam Proctor.

And the comeback was complete in first half injury time when the ball bounced Copley’s way in the box and he fired a shot across goal, evading Proctor and a number of retreating defenders.

Villa had the chance to regain the lead immediately after the interval but Brannigan’s penalty was saved by Asemota.

Arsenal quickly made the Young Lions pay for that miss when Zecevic-John was left unmarked at the back post, slotting a shot through Proctor’s legs.

Brannigan had a goal ruled out for offside as the away side pressed for an equaliser, but their task became harder when Max Asante-Boakye was sent-off with eight minutes left to play.

And the Gunners wrapped up the win in stoppage time when Obi-Martin ran in behind the defence and slid a shot into the far corner.