Five Arsenal cracks Brighton exposed as Premier League title credentials questioned

Arsenal seemed to beryllium walking connected h2o until Saturday's humbling decision to Brighton & Hove Albion brought them crashing backmost down to earth.

Since the adjacent of pre-season, Mikel Arteta's men had won each of their archetypal 7 competitory matches, but a 3-0 nonaccomplishment the Amex Stadium has brought immoderate caller questions implicit their hopes of retaining the Premier League title.

It was a effect that stood successful stark opposition to the Gunners' 2-1 triumph implicit Chelsea a fortnight earlier, erstwhile they controlled overmuch of the crippled contempt falling down wrong the opening 2 minutes.

Meanwhile, past weekend's hard-fought triumph astatine Sunderland had suggested that this Arsenal broadside could grind retired results adjacent erstwhile abbreviated of their best, but Arteta's men recovered fewer answers to Brighton's pressure, with the hosts taking power from the opening stages.

The decision leaves Arsenal's rubric credentials nether greater scrutiny for the archetypal clip this season, and with that successful mind, Sports Mole takes a look astatine 4 cracks the Seagulls exposed astatine the Amex.

Arsenal's striker occupation has not gone away

Arsenal's deficiency of a reliable fig 9 was a persistent talking constituent for ample parts of past season, with overmuch of their rubric occurrence built connected a defence marshalled by David Raya, who kept 19 cleanable sheets, alternatively than accordant extremity merchandise up front.

In fairness, the Gunners had looked crisp successful onslaught during the opening weeks of this season, scoring 16 goals crossed their archetypal 7 competitory matches and giving small crushed to rise caller concerns astir their centre-forward options.

Victor Gyokeres has yet to rediscover the signifier that brought him 21 goals successful each competitions during his debut campaign, portion Kai Havertz has mostly looked much comfy starring the enactment but has scored conscionable doubly successful 5 Premier League matches.

The German's inconsistency came to the fore astatine the Amex, wherever helium struggled to enforce himself connected Brighton's backmost line, recovered it hard to triumph his idiosyncratic battles and missed a clear-cut accidental that could person fixed Arsenal a way backmost into the game, bringing the fig 9 occupation backmost into focus.

Arsenal inactive look susceptible contempt Bruno Guimaraes

Unlike the fig 9 position, Arsenal did astatine slightest code a genuine weakness successful midfield with the £75m signing of Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle during the summer.

The Brazilian's qualities are good known, with his enactment disconnected the ball, physicality and passing scope making him 1 of the much implicit midfielders successful the Premier League.

Arsenal had looked assured successful the mediate of the transportation during the aboriginal games of the campaign, but Saturday's show astatine the Amex brought backmost immoderate of their aged problems, with Guimaraes incapable to find a mode done Brighton's precocious property successful his archetypal Premier League commencement for Arteta's side.

The 28-year-old was seldom capable to dictate the crippled and Arsenal's midfield was overrun for agelong periods, peculiarly erstwhile the Seagulls stepped up the pressure, suggesting that the summation of Guimaraes unsocial has not removed the problems they faced successful that country past season.

Arsenal's debased xG conceded could flatter to deceive

Arsenal person built their estimation implicit the past 2 seasons connected making beingness hard for opponents, conceding conscionable 27 goals successful the full 2025-26 Premier League campaign, the fewest successful the division, portion allowing opponents precise small successful presumption of expected goals.

That antiaircraft grounds had looked intact again this season, with the champions conceding conscionable erstwhile successful their archetypal 4 league matches earlier travelling to the Amex.

Saturday's decision was not arsenic one-sided successful presumption of the underlying numbers arsenic the scoreline suggests, either, with Brighton generating lone 1.33 expected goals from their 17 shots, portion Arsenal's 11 attempts produced a higher xG of 1.58, according to Opta's post-match data.

Brighton's debased xG figure, however, did not halt them from making their chances count, with Pascal Gross and Charalampos Kostoulas some scoring from a region of astir 20 and 25 yards, respectively.

Saturday's decision was the archetypal clip Arsenal had conceded 3 goals successful a lucifer since their 3-2 decision distant to Manchester United successful January, and that crippled besides saw them beaten by long-range finishing, with Patrick Dorgu scoring with a almighty onslaught earlier Matheus Cunha added different effort of akin quality.

Arsenal are losing their set-piece prowess

The Gunners are known for their spot from acceptable pieces, having acceptable a Premier League grounds past play by scoring 19 goals from corners alone, surpassing the erstwhile people of 16 held by Oldham Athletic, West Bromwich Albion and Arsenal themselves.

Arsenal are yet to people from a country oregon non-penalty acceptable portion successful the Premier League this term, though that had not been a large interest during their cleanable commencement to the campaign.

At Brighton, however, the Gunners recovered themselves connected the receiving extremity of the aforesaid limb that has brought them truthful overmuch success, with the Seagulls making 1 country number for their 3rd goal.

Gross delivered the shot into the box, with Chema Andres rising supra Gabriel and Martin Odegaard to caput home, the effort taking a flimsy interaction disconnected the adjacent station connected the Spaniard's archetypal Premier League commencement arsenic the Gunners were beaten astatine their ain game.