Mikel Arteta described Arsenal’s “incredible” performance as they returned to the top of the Premier League with an emphatic 2-0 win over Brighton at the Emirates Stadium.
In a one-sided battle, Gabriel Jesus scored the first goal with his head from a corner kick just after half-time, and in the closing stages Kai Havertz added a second goal from substitute Eddie Nketiah’s pass.
Arsenal squandered a flurry of chances on either side of the goal, registering 26 shots to Brighton’s six, but Havertz’s strike after Pascal Gross missed a dangerous chance at the other end ultimately sealed the result. is now safe.
The win ensures Arsenal bounce back from last weekend’s 1-0 loss to Aston Villa, and also looks to capitalize on Manchester City’s failure to beat Crystal Palace on Saturday. Brighton, meanwhile, have dropped one place to ninth after their struggles in the Europa League on Thursday.
Arteta said: “It was fantastic from start to finish, unbelievable. A big compliment to the players. We put in an incredible performance against a top team and we fully deserved to win the game.” he said.
“We had to be patient, but at the same time we had to be determined against this team, because the moment you have any doubts, they start opening up to you and Because it frustrates them and tries to control the ball.”
“That wasn’t allowed today. We showed a lot of maturity but also intelligence. This game against them really requires intelligence, especially in certain areas, and we showed it really well. It was realized in form.”
What happened to Arsenal’s dominance in the end?
Brighton were chasing a fourth successive win at the Emirates Stadium, but Arsenal were completely dominant in the first half, with Bukayo Saka in particular giving left-back James Milner some tough minutes.
The Arsenal winger outplayed the veteran numerous times in the opening 15 minutes alone, firing in two dangerous crosses and having a low shot saved by Bert Verbruggen.
Soon Arsenal were threatening from all angles, with Martin Odegaard’s shot going wide, Jesus having a number of half-chances denied, and defender Gabriel Magalhães getting too close to Verbruggen from Gabriel Martinelli’s cross. I started giving.
Martinelli has proven to be as dangerous as Saka on Arsenal’s left flank and was expected to break the deadlock by cutting back from his fellow winger.
The home fans were growing increasingly frustrated, but it was referee Tim Robinson’s decision to deny Milner for a foul on Saka before carding Arteta following a lively reaction on the touchline. It was a strange choice not to have him sent off.
There was still time for Arsenal to have a chance as Saka fired home before the interval, but the Gunners picked up where they left off after the break and finally got the lead.
It was a simple goal: Jan Paul van Hecke flicked on Saka’s corner kick and Jesus, free at the far post, headed into the empty net, leaving Verbruggen stranded.
Arsenal continued to threaten the Brighton goal, with Ben White’s header cleared on the line by Lewis Dunk, and Odegaard, Havertz and Saka squandering other chances.
The hosts’ profligacy almost got punished when Gross sent Kaoru Mitoma’s cutback inches wide of Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya’s near post.
But within minutes, Declan Rice made a powerful run to force a save from Verbruggen.
In the end, the hosts made the game safe, with substitute Nketiah releasing Havertz and the Germany international kept his cool to score his fourth goal in seven games, sparking further celebrations.
Arteta: “We showed maturity”
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta “It was fantastic from start to finish, unbelievable. Huge compliment to the players. Against a top team, we put in an unbelievable performance and fully deserved to win the game.”
“You have to give them credit because you know how difficult it is and what Brighton are doing to the team. We didn’t allow something like that to happen, And for that I am very happy.”
“We had to be patient, but at the same time we had to be determined against this team, because the moment you have any doubts, they start opening up to you and Because it frustrates them and tries to control the ball.”
“That wasn’t allowed today. We showed a lot of maturity but also intelligence. This game against them really requires intelligence, especially in certain areas, and we showed it very much. We did it in a good way.”
Regarding Martin Odegaard’s performance, he said: “He wanted to celebrate his beautiful birthday in a great way and he did it with a victory and a great performance.”
“But it’s not just him. Against this team, individually, the way they press, man-to-man, to do what we did today, very good, very accurate, very accurate, very You have to be smart and they did that.” ”
De Zerbi: “Arsenal are the best team in the PL”
brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi “Arsenal played much better than us. They deserved to win the game. We suffered a lot.
“I think Arsenal are the best team in the Premier League, probably one of the best this season. We’re not used to suffering like this. We’re used to controlling games.
“But anyway, I’m really proud of the players’ performance. We suffered with the right attitude and the right mentality.
“I think we can find the advantage of this game in other games too. Maybe we can score with Pascal Gross, [Jack] Hinshelwood scored twice, but it wouldn’t have been fair if we had scored and finished the game 1-1. ”
De Zerbi confirmed that Joel Veltman suffered a serious knee injury, saying: “I don’t like to talk about problems or injuries.
“We want to turn problems into opportunities, possibilities for young players who need to get better and develop. We are playing with a lot of injuries, it’s no secret that we… Everyone knows the number of injuries.
“We could have played better, but we played with the right attitude and mentality. I think this game will be important in the future. We will find this attitude and mentality in the games and win in the future.”
Arsenal Emirates Fortress – Opta Statistics
- Arsenal remain unbeaten in their last 13 home games across all competitions (W11 D2), their longest unbeaten run under Mikel Arteta, and overall since December 2018 (also 13 games). ) is the longest since then.
- Kai Havertz has scored four goals in all competitions in his last seven appearances for Arsenal, the same number as his total of four goals in his last 40 games at club level.
- Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has received his fourth caution in the Premier League this season. I don’t think any manager has been booked as often in the 2023/24 season.
- Brighton failed to score in the Premier League for the first time since February 18, ending a run of 32 consecutive games with a goal. In fact, this is only the second time in Roberto De Zerbi’s 24 away games in this competition that his side have failed to score.
- For the first time in Roberto de Zerbi’s 49 Premier League games, Brighton did not manage a single shot in the first half. Arsenal, on the other hand, had 15 shots on goal at half-time. They have only had two more tries in the first half in all competitions under Mikel Arteta.
What’s next?
Arsenal head to Anfield next Saturday for a hell of a game liverpool5:30 p.m. kickoff, Live On sky sports.
Brighton head to Selhurst Park for derby crystal palace Thursday, December 21st, 8pm kick-off, live broadcast sky sports.