Amex shockwave
Brighton & Hove Albion, brought Arsenal’s perfect start to a sudden stop, in the Premier League title defense, with a big 3-0 win at the Amex Stadium. Fabian Hurzeler’s side pretty much controlled the whole thing, and even made the club’s 125th anniversary feel unreal while handing Arsenal their first loss of the top-flight season. Stand-in captain Pascal Gross got the ball rolling in the 31st minute, smashing in a clean effort from distance, then 19-year-old Charalampos Kostoulas added a second long range strike right on the edge of half-time. Chema Andres then finished it nine minutes after the restart, nodding home unmarked from a Gross corner, and that sealed a historic night for the Seagulls. Brighton & Hove Albion match reference
Tactical failure
The defending champs looked messy for most of the ninety minutes. They never really found their usual defensive steadiness or that midfield rhythm, and Arsenal just couldn’t get into gear. They came into the game having conceded only once in their first four league fixtures, but Brighton’s Bart Verbruggen in goal was a constant problem, and Arsenal kept handing the ball away again and again under heavy pressure from a loud home crowd. Bruno Guimaraes, one of the high-profile summer signings, didn’t manage to take charge next to Declan Rice either, and he was taken off after 60 minutes. After that it was even more of the same really, with the visitors losing first and second balls across the pitch. In the end the defeat ended a seven match winning run across all competitions and it also robbed the Gunners of the chance to match a well known club record for consecutive wins at the start of a season. Brighton & Hove Albion media review
Disappointed manager
After the match, manager Mikel Arteta didn’t do much handwringing about the loss. He basically criticized the way his side executed things and their lack of tactical discipline. The Spaniard said Brighton were comfortably the better team, and he pointed out that his players were a long way from the basic technical level the Premier League demands. Arteta added that the squad made an unacceptable number of technical slips in their own half, and didn’t properly stick to core ideas of play. He called the showing a painful wake-up nudge, and admitted the home team fought with much more intensity in key duels. The Guardian Premier League roundup
Necessary reset
With the international break now in place, Arteta urged his squad to treat the result like a needed trigger, to reset their standards quickly. The loss pushed Arsenal into second place in the Premier League table, behind Manchester City, but he said he’s confident the hard lesson will refocus the group for the long title run ahead. The coaching staff wants to review the defensive mistakes, especially those set piece problems, before the next league matches come around. Arteta is still firm that facing these issues directly will help the champions get their edge back as domestic competition returns. Brighton & Hove Albion media review
Leave a Reply