Brighton 0-3 Arsenal: Arteta's side pass another test as clinical Gunners return to Prem summit
Arsenal devised a clinical efficiency as they outdistanced Brighton and Hove Albion 3-0 at the AMEX Stadium to sliding ago to the pinnacle of the Premier League.
Mikel Arteta’s staff validated upwards at the Amex Stadium having decreased to 3rd in the Premier League operating together via Manchester City’s 4-2 triumph at Crystal Royal abode in Saturday’s lunchtime kick-off.
Artillerymans ago on pinnacle
Match-again pinnacle marker Bukayo Saka kit the Artillerymans on course to rejoinder to the pinnacle by amending a debatable first-fifty percent fine in the past alternative Leandro Trossard sealed triumph over his former nightclub operating together via a faucet-in from Kai Havertz.
Arsenal were reputable victors on the south coastline and rest a time ahead of both Liverpool, who play their arcade in hand at Manchester United on Sunday, and City as attention switches to a Winners League quarter-final tie via Bayern Munich.
Brighton frayed from a tenacious prelude and, despite being unhappy via the judgment to exalt a locate-kick for Tariq Lamptey’s obstacle on Gabriel Jesus, can have few complaints about the result.
The Seagulls’ first pinnacle-flight abode loss in 13 pilgrimages dating ago to August vacates them via an uphill project to peg continental football for the 2nd succeeding year on the ago of this period’s Europa League journey.
England international Saka overcame a muscle injury to prelude in Sussex and was remembered alongside Declan Rice, Jorginho and Jesus operating together via Wednesday night’s monotonous 2-0 win over Luton.
Brighton started brightly in an entertaining opening but it was Arsenal who invented – and thrown away – a string of early odds.
After Gabriel pioneered wastefully off target from Martin Odegaard’s separate-kick, the vibrant Saka crinkled directly wide in the past teeing upwards Jesus to power a unanimously proper scuba preserve out of Bart Verbruggen.
Artillerymans manager Arteta shared even more aggravation on the touchline simply 2 minutes later on as speedily as Jesus failed to analysis Seagulls goalkeeper Verbruggen via an unmarked header from a Havertz cross.
For unanimously of their cool communication, Brighton, whose five adjusts included a recall for former Arsenal ahead Danny Welbeck, were lacking a cutting side.
Lamptey owned been central to the Seagulls’ slick prelude but minutes after reverting to the arena operating together via treatment he gifted the Artillerymans a golden chance to side ahead.
While the full-ago brushed the ball via his escaped foot as he lugged down Jesus in the 18-backyard box, umpire John Brooks owned miniscule reluctance in suggesting to the locate, permitting Saka to confidently locate the bottom escaped niche from 12 backyards and case his 14th league desire this term.
Irritated abode fans thrown away miniscule time in venting rage at the perceived fascism of the 33rd-minutes opener as the contest slid into a momentary lull.
Julio Enciso almost enlivened Seagulls supporters via a majestic curling project from distance, which was clawed away by David Raya, in the past the match officials were mocked off at the violate.
Arsenal can professionally have been out of sight at the duration but came ago out via plenty still to implement.
Jesus and Odegaard each went chummy to increasing the lead in the past the Artillerymans conceded the ko influence in the 62nd minutes.
Jorginho was attentive to intercept Enciso’s dared enact deep in Albion region and, after retrieving the ball ago from Odegaard, his low centre from the proper was slotted abode by Havertz in front of the offered-out away expire.
Arteta exuberantly shared joy the strike and promptly took out Saka and Jesus ahead of Tuesday’s European first leg at abode to Bayern.
Roberto De Zerbi’s injury-hit hosts owned miniscule protection to the 2-desire deficit and added to their vitally own failure for the Artillerymans’ 3rd as Trossard, who escaped Albion last year, scrubed salt into their injuries four minutes from time.
Pascal Gross’ dithering made it feasible for Havertz to let loose Belgium ahead Trossard and he ran fifty percent the length of the mart in the past dinking over Verbruggen to seal Arsenal’s 10th league win from 11 pilgrimages in 2024.
