Liverpool midfielder Stefan Bajcetic has reportedly caught the attention of LaLiga powerhouses Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Bajcetic, 18, scored his first Premier League goal in a short substitute appearance against Aston Villa on Boxing Day, and after impressing in a pair of January FA Cup starts, he forced his way into the first team.

He has started their past four Premier League fixtures as well as Tuesday's Champions League Final rematch against Madrid, indicating a rapid rise in the eyes of Jurgen Klopp.

The Spaniard left Celta Vigo in 2020 to head to the Premier League, but his home country could soon come calling to bring him back.

TOP STORY – LIVERPOOL TEEN CAPTURES IMAGINATION OF EUROPE'S ELITE

According to Fichajes, both Barcelona and Madrid "have been closely following his evolution", and they believe Bajcetic possesses the qualities necessary to perform at the highest level.

Barcelona reportedly view him as "an ideal piece to form a future midfield with Pedri and Gavi", while Madrid would like him to be the successor to ageing veterans Luka Modric and Toni Kroos.

His contract ties him to Anfield until 2027, but the Spanish giants could try to test his transfer value as soon as this off-season.

ROUND-UP

– The Daily Mail is reporting Aston Villa will listen to offers for 30-year-old goalkeeper and World Cup hero Emiliano Martinez after the season with the hope that a significant transfer fee could fund a mini-rebuild.

– Leicester City will look to sell James Maddison at the end of the season if they can not convince him to sign a new contract, with Manchester City, Newcastle United and Tottenham named as interested parties, per Football Insider.

– According to The Telegraph, 31-year-old midfielder N'Golo Kante will sign a new contract to remain at Chelsea.

– Gazzetta dello Sport is reporting Inter will look to move on from wing-backs Denzel Dumfries and Robin Gosens at the end of the season, with Dumfries a potential piece in a swap deal for Chelsea loanee Romelu Lukaku.

– According to the Evening Standard, Saudi Arabian clubs – including Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr – are circling 30-year-old Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha with the belief he would be open to a Middle East move for the right price.

The Premier League title race took another twist on Saturday, with Arsenal now back atop the pile.

Manchester City's 3-1 win at Emirates Stadium in midweek had seemingly given them control of the two-horse race for the trophy.

But City's failure to build on that success and Arsenal's late heroics on the road at Aston Villa mean the Gunners have a two-point lead over Pep Guardiola's men with a game in hand.

Elsewhere, Liverpool boosted their top-four aspirations while denting those of Newcastle United, who have now won just one of their last seven Premier League games.

Here, Stats Perform looks at Saturday's biggest games through the lens of Opta data.

Aston Villa 2-4 Arsenal: Jorginho and Martinelli produce late show

Saturday saw Arsenal reassume command of what is fast becoming an engrossing title race, but it looked for a long time as if they would suffer another setback.

The Gunners appeared set to settle for a 2-2 draw at Villa Park, only for Jorginho's rasping injury-time drive to cannon off the crossbar and then deflect in off Emiliano Martinez. Gabriel Martinelli made it 4-2 in the 98th minute.

It marked the first time Arsenal have scored a 90th-minute winner away from home in the league since Martinelli netted against Crystal Palace in May 2021, which was also the last time they scored twice in the 90th minute in the same game in the competition.

Arsenal's joy should be tempered somewhat by defensive concerns.

Indeed, Arsenal have now conceded the opening goal in four of their last five Premier League games, one more than they did in their first 18 games of the 2022-23 campaign (3).

Chelsea 0-1 Southampton: Saints pile pressure on Potter

The result was overshadowed by the head injury suffered by Cesar Azpilicueta, but it was an extremely significant one for Southampton, who boosted their survival hopes by completing the league double against Chelsea for the first time since the 1987-88 season.

Defeat for Chelsea was their first at home against the team starting the day bottom of the Premier League table for the first time since April 2014 vs Sunderland (1-2).

The Blues have lost three of their last six Premier League home games (W2 D1), as many defeats as in their previous 25 league games at Stamford Bridge combined (W13 D9), that run piling the pressure on manager Graham Potter.

Chelsea's latest home loss was engineered by James Ward-Prowse, who in scoring his 17th direct free-kick goal in the Premier League moved just one behind record holder David Beckham (18), netting 13 of them away from home.

Nottingham Forest 1-1 Manchester City: Forest hold champions at bay

If Forest do manage to stay up, their home from will be a significant reason why. They are unbeaten in eight home games in the Premier League (W4 D4), their best home unbeaten run in the top-flight since a 20-game stretch between February 1995 and January 1996.

Prior to this stalemate, Forest had lost their last seven Premier League games against the reigning champions, by an aggregate score of 29-3, including a 6-0 defeat to Man City earlier this season. They avoided defeat against the reigning champions for the first time since December 1994, when they beat Manchester United.

Bernardo Silva's fine opener initially looked like it would be enough for City to take all three points and return to the top of the league, and continued a recent theme for the Portugal international, who has 32 Premier League goals for the club. Three of his last four goals in the competition have been scored from outside the box, with only three of his first 28 coming from distance.

Jack Grealish laid on the assist for Silva. Grealish has been directly involved in six goals (2 goals, 4 assists) in the Premier League since the conclusion of the World Cup. Grealish had one goal and no assists in eight league appearances this season prior to the World Cup break.

Newcastle United 0-2 Liverpool: Pope sends Magpies hopes up in smoke

Newcastle have an EFL Cup final with Manchester United to look forward to next Sunday, but they will be without goalkeeper Nick Pope after his red card in this one for handling the ball outside the area.

Pope's red card was the fifth instance of a Newcastle goalkeeper being sent off in the Premier League, with only Liverpool and Aston Villa (6 each) seeing more keeper reds in the competition. 

He conceded twice before being sent off in the 22nd minute - the earliest a goalkeeper has conceded twice and been sent off in a Premier League game.

Those two goals came inside 17 minutes and were as many as Newcastle had conceded in their previous eight Premier League games combined, proving enough to extend the Magpies' winless league run against Liverpool to 13 matches (D4 L9) and end their 17-game unbeaten run in the competition.

The Reds are the only team to beat Newcastle in the Premier League this season, with victory coming on the back of just their second away clean sheet in 2022-23.

Arsenal were "absolutely bouncing" after Saturday's dramatic 4-2 win over Aston Villa saw them produce a morale-boosting response to defeat to Manchester City.

Mikel Arteta watched on as Arsenal were twice forced to come from behind at Villa Park in the day's early kick-off, with Ollie Watkins and Philippe Coutinho putting the hosts in front.

Bukayo Saka and Oleksandr Zinchenko got the equalisers for the Gunners, who for a while looked as though they would have to settle for a 2-2 draw, particularly when Martin Odegaard missed a glorious opportunity.

But in second-half stoppage time, Jorginho's 25-yard strike hit the crossbar and ricocheted into the goal off Emiliano Martinez's head to finally put Arsenal in front.

They finished Villa off on the break, Gabriel Martinelli putting into an empty net while Martinez was up the other end for a corner, and Arsenal's celebrations at full-time depicted intense jubilation after a run of three Premier League games without a win.

The midweek defeat to City saw Pep Guardiola's men replace Arsenal at the summit, though such a dramatic turnaround appeared to be the perfect tonic.

Asked what the mood was in the Arsenal changing rooms at full-time, Arteta told BT Sport: "It was absolutely bouncing because it was a big effort to play less than 72 hours after the [City] game that we had, and the result we had.

"That is obviously mentally tough, but I'm really pleased with the boys."

The manner of the triumph was as pleasing as anything for Arteta, who reminded his players they cannot expect to just win games in a straightforward fashion.

"When you want to be at the top, you are going to have to win games in many different ways," he continued.

"You're going to have to score goals in the 94th minute, and sometimes play with 10 men, get comeback results.

"To do it especially against this team in this stadium, a lot of credit to the boys."

Arsenal's attitude and spirit also impressed Arteta, though he was under no illusions about their performance being far from perfect.

He added: "We showed a lot of character, resilience to get back twice in the game and end up winning it.

"We have to take some lessons from today because especially in the first half we didn't do the simple things right.

"You give them the two chances to score those goals in a really simple way, but we spoke at half-time, if we raised individual standards and start to do what we have to do, we're going to win this game, and we then went out – which is difficult – and won it.

"In the second half I think we outplayed them. I think we created chance after chance, dominated the game. We needed a magic moment and Jorginho produced it."

Jorginho summed up his feelings after his strike forced a late goal to give Arsenal all three points at Aston Villa by simply saying: "That's [the] Premier League".

The Italy international hit a superb shot in the 93rd minute that struck the woodwork, before hitting Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez on the back of the head and rolling into the net to put Arsenal 3-2 up on Saturday.

Gabriel Martinelli sealed a 4-2 win with a breakaway goal in the closing seconds as Arsenal returned to the top of the Premier League table ahead of Manchester City's trip to Nottingham Forest.

"That's [the] Premier League," Jorginho told BT Sport. "That's why it's the best league in the world. It's just beautiful."

Mikel Arteta's side were without a win in three top-flight games and fell 1-0 down early on at Villa Park to an Ollie Watkins goal, with Bukayo Saka's equaliser followed by Philippe Coutinho restoring the hosts' lead before the break.

Oleksandr Zinchenko levelled things again just after the hour, before Jorginho's shot forced a dramatic Martinez own goal to delight the visitors, with Martinelli adding an easy fourth on the counter after Villa's goalkeeper had come up for a corner.

"It was very important," Jorginho added. "After the last results we had and the start [today] it was not easy, we were not producing our game, and then we came to half-time, had a talk and we went back to doing the basics we need to do and we could change the game."

Zinchenko hailed the "amazing group" at Arsenal and stated his belief that they can "achieve everything" as they compete with his former club City in the title race.

"I think from this game I would like to say two things," he said. "First, we took an unbelievable lesson for all of us, we just need to believe until the very end and we can achieve everything.

"Like I said many times in the past already, this group is [full of] such amazing people, can achieve everything they want if we want to continue in this way, keep fighting, keep believing.

"Also, this reaction of us in the second half is perfect, I think that's the right way to go for the future games."

Emiliano Martinez's late own goal proved the turning point as Arsenal came from behind twice to beat Aston Villa 4-2 and boost to their Premier League title hopes.

The Gunners, who were replaced at the summit after losing to Manchester City in midweek, looked to be heading to another underwhelming result at Villa Park before luck went their way in stoppage time.

Ollie Watkins' clinical finish put former Arsenal boss Unai Emery's Villa in charge early on, and although Bukayo Saka soon equalised, the visitors trailed at the break thanks to Philippe Coutinho's sensationally worked team goal.

Oleksandr Zinchenko levelled again and that appeared to be as good as it would get for Arsenal, but Martinez inadvertently put into his own net late on and was then caught up the other end of the pitch as Gabriel Martinelli completed a dramatic turnaround.

Arsenal's limp start provided few clues of the jubilation to come as they were behind inside five minutes.

Matty Cash robbed Zinchenko and released Watkins, who created space with a step-over before lashing across Aaron Ramsdale into the bottom-right corner.

Saka hammered into the roof of the net to level when Ben White's cross was only partially cleared.

But Villa restored their lead in style just past the half-hour mark, Coutinho coolly slotting in from 16 yards after Emiliano Buendia dummied Alex Moreno's cut-back to conclude a brilliant move.

Mikel Arteta's side began to exert more control after the break restored parity again when Zinchenko drilled home with 61 minutes played.

When Martin Odegaard then missed a glorious chance to win it, Arsenal appeared to be heading for a fourth consecutive top-flight game without a win.

But a stoppage-time potshot from Jorginho cracked against the crossbar and ricocheted in off former Arsenal goalkeeper Martinez's head.

Martinez went up for a Villa corner in the hope of making amends, but Arsenal countered, allowing an already-celebrating Martinelli to knock into an empty net.

What does it mean? Arsenal show immense character

Even if they had not ultimately gone on to win, Arsenal would have been due plenty of praise for their attitude here as they twice they came back from a goal down.

In the end, that spirit to keep scrapping away made the win possible, and the victory will surely be a massive boost for their title push after a tricky few weeks.

It looked like Arsenal were going to be four without a win in the Premier League, but they are back at the summit for at least a couple of hours and likely feeling they got what they deserved.

Odegaard a worthy winner

Had his late miss been costly, it would have felt so unjust given the quality of his performance.

Odegaard was sensational here and at the heart of so much of Arsenal's best play. He made seven key passes, including one assist, which is the most by an Arsenal player in a single Premier League game since April 2019.

Martinez antics come back to haunt him

Martinez had been acting up all day. He was routinely time wasting, seemingly trying to wind up Arsenal fans – there was something quite fitting about the late turnaround having him at the centre of it.

Key Opta Facts

- This was Arsenal's 14th Premier League away win against Aston Villa, their joint-best such record against a side in the competition (also 14 against West Ham).

- Arsenal have now conceded the opening goal in four of their last five Premier League games, one more than they did in their first 18 games of the 2022-23 campaign (3).

- Ollie Watkins has scored in each of his last four Premier League games for Aston Villa – it is his longest such run in the top four tiers of English football. Indeed, only Erling Haaland and Marcus Rashford (both 8) have more goals in the competition since the World Cup break than his five.

- Aston Villa’s Philippe Coutinho has now scored five Premier League goals against Arsenal. Against no other opponents does he have more (also five against Manchester City and Southampton).

- Only Erling Haaland (30) and Harry Kane (18) have been involved in more Premier League goals this season than Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka (17 – nine goals, eight assists), while it is the second successive season he has reached double figures for goals in all competitions (10), netting 12 in 2021-22.

What's next?

Arsenal go to Leicester City next Saturday, while Aston Villa are at Everton the same day.

Emiliano Martinez's late own goal proved the turning point as Arsenal came from behind twice to beat Aston Villa 4-2 and boost to their Premier League title hopes.

The Gunners, who were replaced at the summit after losing to Manchester City in midweek, looked to be heading to another underwhelming result at Villa Park before luck went their way in stoppage time.

Ollie Watkins' clinical finish put Villa in charge early on, and although Bukayo Saka soon equalised, the visitors trailed at the break thanks to Philippe Coutinho's sensationally worked team goal.

Oleksandr Zinchecko levelled again and that appeared to be as good as it would get for Arsenal, but Martinez inadvertently put into his own net late on and was then caught up the other end of the pitch as Gabriel Martinelli completed a dramatic turnaround.

Liverpool are reportedly keeping a close eye on Chelsea's Mason Mount as negotiations for a contract extension continue to stall.

Mount, 24, has been with Chelsea since he was six years old, racking up 190 appearances and 33 goals for the club since breaking into the first team for the 2019-20 season.

An England regular with 36 international caps, Mount is a crucial part of Chelsea's midfield options, although his minutes have been far less secure under Graham Potter than previous managers.

Of his 19 Premier League starts this campaign, Mount has been subbed off 12 times, and the club are reportedly hesitant to meet his contract demands.

TOP STORY – LIVERPOOL MONITOR MOUNT AS HIS CONTRACT WINDS DOWN

Mount only has one more season remaining on his deal before he will be able to leave on a free transfer, and the Daily Mail is reporting Liverpool are hovering for an opportunity to pry him away.

The report claims Mount is aiming to triple his current £80,000-per-week wages, which would bring him in line with recent transfer acquisitions, as well as 23-year-old team-mate Reece James, who was rewarded with a £250,000-per-week deal in September.

If Chelsea are not able to lock up their talented midfielder by the end of the season, they will likely be forced into a sale.

ROUND-UP

– According to 90min, Manchester City have renewed their interest in 24-year-old West Ham midfielder Declan Rice as they plan a midfield rebuild.

– The Evening Standard is reporting Chelsea and Juventus have mutual interest in converting Denis Zakaria's loan move into a permanent deal, with an optional buy-clause set at £27m (€30m).

– Aston Villa will try to sign 25-year-old Roma striker Tammy Abraham at the end of the season, who is believed to be valued around £40m (€44m), per 90min.

– Footmercato is reporting Paris Saint-Germain have been in contact with Roma boss Jose Mourinho about potentially taking over from Christophe Galtier, although the French giants prefer Zinedine Zidane.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta questioned why his side were given the Saturday afternoon kick-off time after Wednesday's battle against Manchester City.

It will be just 63 hours between matches when Arsenal take on Aston Villa away from home, which has been outlawed when the mid-week meeting is of the Champions League variety, but there are no restrictions for domestic games.

Arsenal, with a game in-hand, need a win to reclaim top spot on the table, but they will be playing a Villa side benefitting from an extra three days of rest.

Speaking to the media, Arteta said it does not make sense to have one rule for the Champions League but to disregard the same logic for other schedule congestion.

"There are certain rules with the Champions League," he said. "When you are playing on Wednesday night and then you cannot play [Saturday lunchtime], so that should apply to any competition.

"If think you are talking physiologically, it is very difficult to turn around in that period to get the best outcome and reduce the injury risk for players.

"They put the schedule the way they did. It's a bit unusual, but it's not about being worried or not worried. We have to play. I want the players to be in the best possible mindset and physically ready to get that challenge going."

While he acknowledges it is not an ideal situation, Arteta said it is no excuse for a poor performance.

"We knew we were going to play at that time," he said. "The players are young – they have a lot of energy.”

One of those young players Arsenal are relying on is 23-year-old Eddie Nketiah, who has now gone four games without a goal after a run of six goals in six matches.

"The most difficult thing is to score goals, but Eddie produced a penalty that could have been a goal," he said. "He could have scored a hat-trick and then we're talking about something else. 

"Unfortunately he didn't, and so we have these debates. But we have full confidence in these kids."

Aston Villa defender Tyrone Mings has signed a new contract with the Premier League club that will run through until the end of the 2025-26 season.

England international Mings has made 149 appearances since joining Villa from Bournemouth in January 2019, initially on loan before signing permanently six months later.

The 29-year-old's existing deal was due to expire next year, but Villa confirmed on Friday he has signed an extension.

"Since the day I arrived, this has always been the place for me and I'm really happy to extend my contract here," Mings posted on social media. 

"Thank you for all of your support over the last four years and I'm excited to see what we can still achieve together."

Mings was stripped of the captaincy by former boss Steven Gerrard ahead of this season, but he has been a key player since Unai Emery was appointed in October.

The centre-back had played every minute in the Premier League under Emery prior to missing last weekend's defeat to Manchester City through injury.

"I am very happy with him. His commitment is great and his performances are great," Emery said of the England international.

"He is in the best moment in his career and I think the supporters love him."

Emery confirmed Mings has returned to training this week and will be assessed ahead of Saturday's home league meeting with Arsenal.

Mikel Arteta felt there were "a lot of positives" to take from a defeat to Manchester City but wants his Arsenal side to be more efficient.

City replaced the Gunners at the top of the Premier League table with a 3-1 win at Emirates Stadium on Wednesday.

Arsenal, who have a game in hand on the champions, are without a win in four matches in all competitions and need a response when they travel for a reunion with former boss Unai Emery and his Aston Villa side on Saturday.

However, manager Arteta is confident Arsenal can rediscover the sort of form that had at one stage given them an eight-point cushion over City at the summit.

"I know the right things we have to do to continue to be there [at the top]," the Spaniard said.

"We have seen where the level is and what we have to do to be at that level. There are a lot of positive things to take, for sure, from the season so far [and the loss to City].

"We know that the level of efficiency has to be good with every single game to beat them [City] at the end.

"We are highly motivated to do that."

He added of the defeat to Pep Guardiola's men: "You have to give credit to a team when they beat you, but when you analyse the game again, I think we lost it."

Arteta says Arsenal are relishing the opportunity to return to the top of the table when they face Villa.

He said: "It is normal that you want to get maximum points, which we didn't in the last few games. We have to improve because we want to win more games.

"So we are highly motivated for tomorrow's game because we want to perform well and win the game."

Meanwhile, Arteta condemned the behaviour of fans who threw objects at City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne, who opened the scoring in the blockbuster midweek clash.

"Our fans were extraordinary in the game with their level of support and the way they helped to inspire the team," he said.

"There was an incident at the end that no-one is going to tolerate within this stadium and the club is investigating."

Roses are red, violets are blue, have we got the perfect Valentine's Day content for you!

(Very) questionable rhymes aside, love is in the air as long-standing couples and newly formed relationships celebrate the day of romance on Tuesday.

The Premier League is certainly no stranger to the language of love, so while cracking open a bottle of red and exchanging cheap tat with your significant other, why not get some inspiration for love with our Valentine's Day facts with some help from Cupid!

Well, maybe not Cupid, but Opta – and the team at Opta are full of love!

MATT LE KISS-IER'S FOND VALENTINE'S DAY MEMORY

Valentine's Day is of course a day for love (and overpaying for those last-minute flowers and cards you almost forgot to buy…).

Three players who've enjoyed a particularly joyous February 14 in the past are Southampton legend Matt Le Tissier, ex-Liverpool striker Michael Owen, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who have each scored three times in the Premier League on this date – no one has managed more.

All three of those were Valentine's Day hat-tricks as well.

Le Tissier registered three against the Reds back in 1994; Owen took home the match ball with a treble for Liverpool versus Sheffield Wednesday four years later; Aubameyang broke Leeds United hearts in 2021 with Arsenal.

COUPLE GOALS

Sharing's caring, as they say.

Mutual support is a key component of any healthy relationship, particularly the relationship between a striker and their fellow forwards…

If there's any Premier League pairing that sums up "couple goals", it has to be Harry Kane and Son Heung-min.

The Tottenham duo have directly linked up for 44 goals in the league, more than any other pairing in Premier League history.

No couple have ever combined for more than one goal on Valentine's Day, though Philippe Coutinho and the late Jose Antonio Reyes have shared the love on the most romantic day of the year – they have tallied two assists each on February 14, more than anyone else.

CARDS GALORE

Whether from a partner or a secret admirer, it's always nice to receive a card or two on Valentine's Day.

Unless of course you're playing in the Premier League, in which case you want to see the referees keep their cards in their pockets.

In this regard, Leicester City have been the most prolific, their nine yellow cards on Valentine's Day being more than any other team have received. Arsenal follow with six.

The Foxes also fare badly when it comes to red cards, having earned two on February 14 – Danny Simpson (2016) and Hamza Choudhury (2020) account for those dismissals.

The only other player to receive a red card on Valentine's Day is Everton hero Duncan Ferguson ... no, we weren't shocked either.

LOVE IS BLIND'S TEAM-MATE

Donald Love's name gets a good airing all over social media every February 14 given it's ripe for Valentine's Day punnery.

The defender, who now plays for Morecambe in League One, made his Manchester United debut the day before Valentine's Day in 2016, coming on as a substitute in a 2-1 defeat to Sunderland, who he would also go on to play for.

In that game, he slotted in on the right of a back four that also included another pun-magnet in Daley Blind. So, on Valentine's Day 2016, you could have legitimately said Love is Blind...'s team-mate.

Love never went on to play a Premier League game on Valentine's Day, which for obvious reasons is rather regrettable.

SHORT AND SWEET

Valentine's Days come and go, but in football as in life, not every relationship stands the test of time.

In the Premier League, there have been three players to make their only appearance in the competition on February 14.

Neil Cutler's brief fling with Aston Villa resulted in a one-off appearance in 2000; Shay Logan appeared for Manchester City seven years later; and in 2021 the fittingly named Niall Huggins got his sole outing for Leeds United.

It's better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all… and our heart goes out to those in that singles club.

Rodri said Manchester City did their talking on the pitch as they bounced back from a troubling week by beating Aston Villa.

City won 3-1 on Sunday at the Etihad Stadium – where the Premier League anthem was booed by home fans prior to kick-off – to move within three points of leaders Arsenal ahead of Wednesday's crunch clash in north London.

Rodri opened the scoring in the fourth minute, with Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez putting City into a deserved 3-0 lead by the break.

Ollie Watkins pulled one back for Villa on his 100th appearance for the club, and although Jhon Duran hit the crossbar late on, City were comfortable enough as they made something of a statement after the Premier League accused them over 100 alleged breaches of financial regulations between 2009 and 2018.

"We just talk about football, we talk on the pitch," Rodri told BBC Sport when asked about the off-field furore surrounding City.

"What happens off the pitch is not our business."

City can move top of the Premier League with a win over Arsenal on Wednesday after the Gunners took just one point from their past two games against Everton and Brentford.

"We have the chance to go top," Rodri added. "Go there and show our personality, the team that we are.

"They are playing at an incredible level and we have an incredible level too. It is going to be an incredible fight and an incredible battle and we have the chance to be on top of the table, so that's what we have to think."

Rodri had a difficult game in the 1-0 defeat at Tottenham last week, but the midfielder was back at his best on Sunday.

The Spain international had three shots, got two on target, and created four chances for team-mates, while topping the game for touches (112) and aerial duels won (five).

"Important game for me. It's always part of the game when you fail, when you miss," Rodri said. 

"I was a bit upset last week but of course. I think the best players are the ones who come back easily.

"Today the team was great, even though I scored the first goal. It was important for me, for the mood of the team.

"Here in the Etihad when we can score in the first 15 minutes, it is a different game for us.

"The crowd was amazing, the environment was great. That's what we need. Sometimes the coach speaks about this. We need the [fans] in every game here."

Villa boss Unai Emery, meanwhile, rued sloppy mistakes from his team in the first half.

"We knew this would be a tough game after three away wins but we were not competitive," he told Sky Sports.

"They were clinical, but we made mistakes today, three very important goals we could avoid normally.

"In the second we tried to be consistent, forget the score and be competitive and I think we did that in the second half.

"We have to be clinical with the chances we get, but in the first half they were better than us and decided the match. I can only say sorry to our supporters, and we did not play in the way we have been."

Manchester City put a difficult week behind them as they cruised to a 3-1 victory over Aston Villa.

The build-up to Sunday's meeting at the Etihad Stadium was dominated by news of the Premier League accusing City of breaking over 100 financial regulations between 2009 and 2018.

Pep Guardiola, managing his 250th Premier League game, delivered an impassioned defence of his club and his players performed as they returned to winning ways following their loss at Tottenham last week.

Rodri's header, Ilkay Gundogan's tap-in and Riyad Mahrez's penalty had City 3-0 up by the break, and though Ollie Watkins pulled one back for Villa, the champions comfortably closed the gap on Arsenal to three points ahead of Wednesday's crunch meeting between the top two.

Having jeered the Premier League anthem, City's fans had something to cheer inside four minutes, when Rodri headed in from Mahrez's corner.

Only a fine save from Emiliano Martinez prevented Gundogan – City's hero in the title-clinching comeback in last season's corresponding fixture – making it 2-0.

Martinez was fortunate to be awarded a free-kick after a collision with Erling Haaland allowed Gundogan to arrow home.

A glut of City chances went begging but their win was still all but ensured by half-time.

Gundogan got his goal after brilliant work from Haaland, with Mahrez slamming in from the spot after Jacob Ramsey fouled Grealish.

Having replaced Haaland at half-time, Julian Alvarez teed up City's first second-half opening – Martinez denying Rodri a second.

Watkins marked his 100th Villa appearance by scoring in three consecutive Premier League games for the first time, capitalising on Manuel Akanji's error.

It would prove nothing more than a consolation, with City unfortunate not to restore their three-goal cushion through Alvarez and Mahrez – who blasted over from close range late on – as they clinched a 13th straight home league win over Villa.

What does it mean? City's siege mentality a scary sign for title rivals

"I think they are going to be together and try to respond on the pitch," Villa head coach Unai Emery said of City ahead of the game. "It is going to be very difficult. It's a big challenge for us."

That challenge proved too big for the visitors, with City seemingly determined to put on a show and make a statement of intent after the Premier League's allegations came to light.

City had 17 shots, got nine on target and finished with an expected goals (xG) of 3.64 – compared to 0.25 for their opponents – and they will move top of the table should they defeat Arsenal on Wednesday.

They did offer some chances to Villa in the second half, with Watkins punishing them and Jhon Duran rattling the crossbar, but City were well worth the three points.

Pep brings 250 up in style

Guardiola's 250th league game in charge of City featured some typically scintillating attacking play, and ended in a typically convincing success.

He has won 184 of those 250 matches (73.6 per cent), with his City side scoring 621 goals in the competition and toppling countless records.

Haaland concern

Comfortably up at half-time, Guardiola had the luxury of being able to take off City's star striker, who did appear to be nursing a thigh problem in the first half.

City fans will hope it was just a precaution, with their clash with Arsenal just around the corner. Haaland, who was largely frustrated in the defeat at Spurs, was a menace in the first half, with his assist for Gundogan his 29th direct goal contribution in the top flight this season (11 more than any other player in the league).

Haaland was involved in one small flashpoint during his time on the pitch, with Mahrez seemingly taking over penalty duties against the Norway international's wishes, though the incident was swiftly brushed aside.

What's next?

City head to Emirates Stadium on Wednesday in what seems set to be the first truly pivotal clash in this season's tittle race, while the Gunners are also Villa's next opponents on Saturday.

Manchester City fans booed the Premier League anthem ahead of kick-off in Sunday's game against Aston Villa.

City have been accused of over 100 breaches of financial regulations between a period of 2009 and 2018.

Their first match since those accusations came to light saw them host Villa at the Etihad Stadium, where the league's anthem – which is played before every match in the competition – was roundly booed by the home supporters.

Pep Guardiola, who gave an impassioned defence of the club this week, received a huge ovation as he made his way out of the tunnel for what was his 250th Premier League match in charge of City.

City fans have previous for jeering at anthems, with supporters routinely giving the same response to the Champions League's music after they were accused of breaching UEFA's financial fair play rules.

They eventually managed to overturn a ban from European football and instead paid a €10million fine.

Kylian Mbappe will go on to win the Ballon d'Or many times, according to his World Cup nemesis Emiliano Martinez.

Goalkeeper Martinez won the Golden Glove award for his performances in Qatar, as he played a key role in Argentina's triumph.

Having proved to be the shoot-out hero against the Netherlands in the quarter-finals, Martinez made a crucial stop from Randal Kolo Muani in Argentina's thrilling 3-3 draw with France in the final.

The Aston Villa shot-stopper proved his mettle again in the shoot-out, though it was his celebrations in the aftermath of Argentina's victory that drew criticism from French fans.

Having made a rude gesture while in possession of the Golden Glove award, Martinez was filmed leading chants including a slant at Mbappe in Argentina's dressing room, while he also held a doll with an Mbappe mask stuck to it during the squad's celebrations in Buenos Aires.

Martinez was one of the first to comfort Mbappe, who scored a hat-trick in the final and converted his penalty in the shoot-out, after the game at Lusail Stadium, and insisted no disrespect was intended.

"I didn't mean to hurt anyone," said Martinez, who has been nominated for a FIFA Best award following his achievements in Qatar, in an interview with Ole.

"Throughout my career I've grown up with the French and I've never had the slightest problem. You can ask [former Arsenal club-mate Olivier] Giroud what kind of person I am. I really like the French culture and mentality.

"The locker room thing should never have come out. When France beat us in 2018, I remember there were songs about [Lionel] Messi. If a team beats Brazil, they will sing about Neymar. There is nothing personal against Mbappe. I respect him enormously. If we sing about him or about Neymar, it is because they are the best."

Explaining why he held the doll during Argentina's open-top bus parade through the nation's capital, Martinez said: "People threw a lot of dolls at us along the way, they threw almost a hundred at us during the journey.

"At that moment a doll with Mbappe's face fell at my feet, I picked it up because it made me laugh, I grabbed it for two seconds and threw it back, that's all. How could I make fun of Mbappe?

"He scored four goals! Four goals in the final... He must think I'm his dummy! I repeat: I have enormous respect for Mbappe. I'll even tell you one thing: he's the best French player I've ever seen."

"After the game I told him that he could be proud of himself and keep his head up because he played a great game and was one of the best players in the world.

"I also told him that it was a pleasure to play against him, that he almost won this final alone. He is a boy with immense talent. I realised facing him that he is different. When Leo leaves football, he will win many Ballons d'Or."

Martinez, who quipped his team-mates think he is "crazy in the head", also believes he is capable of not only playing in, but also winning, the Champions League.

"I'm still hungry, I want to win the Champions League," the 30-year-old said. "Obviously, I would like to do it with Villa, but it will be difficult because the club is still in its growth phase.

"I won the most beautiful title there is with the national team, and now I'm aiming for the biggest title for clubs.

"I would like to win a title with Villa, but it's complicated. You should never lose hope, we'll see what will happen. I have the feeling that I have the level to play in the Champions League and try to win it."

And what about linking up with Mbappe at club level?

"I came close to playing in Ligue 1 several times when I was younger," added Martinez, who acknowledged he almost quit football due to a lack of game time while at Arsenal.

"PSG is a great club with great players. They aim to win the Champions League every year. Who wouldn't love to play there?! Leo and Kylian are cracks! Partners that any player dreams of having."