Laura Woods addressed Gabby Agbonlahor's Arsenal criticism in superb fashion - pointing out he'd already undone his argument before making his controversial point.
Agbonlahor followed Ashley Young's lead after the Gunners players were accused of over-celebrating their 1-0 win over Villa in the Premier League this weekend, telling talkSPORT: "The way they celebrated at the end of the game, it was like they'd won the Champions League, not qualified for it.
"I know it was a great result but the scenes and the players… we were right behind the fans. It was like they'd won the league, not beaten Aston Villa, a team that they should be beating. I think they overdid the celebrations."
Responding to his comment also on talkSPORT, Woods, an Arsenal fan, hit back at the suggestion that teams and fans shouldn't celebrate success, asking "What's the point?" in football otherwise.
"It's a club and a fanbase that for large swathes of the last four or five years, maybe even six years since dropping out of the Champions League, that has been quite divided," said Woods. "And now they look like a club that is much more unified.
"If you are not allowed to celebrate your wins no matter how big or small they are, what's the point in going to football? If you're not allowed to celebrate a goal in a game that you might lose just in case you lose it.
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"If you're not allowed to celebrate a win in a season where you're going to a top-four, shall we just wait until the end of the 38-game season and then celebrate where we are in the league? It doesn't really work like that.
"They had a clean sheet as well. Aston Villa aren't mugs and they have significantly invested in their own right. So it's not like you're saying we are playing against a team that are bottom of the league. Aston Villa are a good side."
Woods added: "Just stop penalising people for celebrating, Gabby. It's football at the end of the day, you have to be able to celebrate, you have to be able to go to a game. and I loved that they celebrated. That's what Arsenal is all about, now, that unified presence. But Gabby Agbonlahor, don't listen to me, listen to your argument."
The video then cut to a clip of Agbonlahor speaking in November 2021 where he heaps praise on Steven Gerrard for showing passion on the touchline. "His celebration for the goal. It was like he'd won a cup final! That's what fans want to see," he said.
Cutting back to a smirking Woods, the talkSPORT pundit concluded: "That's what fans want to see isn't it Gabby? People celebrating anything in the league. It doesn't matter if you've just won the league or you've just won a single game. Fans want to see celebrations. Well done Gabby Agbonlahor for undoing your own argument before you'd even made it!"
