With a thrilling victory at Brighton, Arsenal increased its lead over the competition at the top to seven points.
This result increases Arsenal’s lead going into 2023 together with Manchester City’s 1-1 draw with Everton.
Prior to Kaoru Mitoma’s goal, the visitors had a 3-0 lead owing to goals from Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, and Eddie Nketiah.
Before Evan Ferguson added Brighton’s second goal with his first league goal, Gabriel Martinelli put any jitters to rest with Arsenal’s fourth goal.
Mitoma’s second goal was disallowed, preventing the home crowd from witnessing a spectacular finish, and Arsenal held on to earn a well-earned three points.
For the opening hour, Brighton lagged far behind, but after Martinelli restored the three-goal lead, they exhibited great energy to once again cut the deficit in half through Ferguson.
When Mitoma appeared to have scored again with two minutes left, they were certain they had made it 4-3, but a VAR review proved the Japanese midfielder was just slightly offside.
With both teams having played 16 games, Arsenal returns to action against Newcastle United on Tuesday with a convincing advantage over the defending champions City.
Despite defensive stutters, Arsenal maintains its composure
Due to the World Cup break, the Premier League season is still not halfway over, but this victory may be crucial to Arsenal’s quest for a first championship since 2004.
The last team to defeat Arsenal was Brighton, who won the Carabao Cup 3-1 in November. However, a similar performance seemed impossible as Saka scored his sixth league goal of the year after latching onto Martinelli’s rebound.
Arsenal fans may have been concerned about striker Gabriel Jesus’ absence due to a knee injury sustained while on World Cup duty, but Saka and Odegaard are making up for the Brazilian striker’s absence.
Before halftime, Odegaard, the captain of Arsenal, gave his team a 2-0 lead by capitalizing on a bad Billy Gilmour header out. The Norwegian’s effort deflected off the ground and beyond Brighton goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.
After Sanchez fumbled Martinelli’s shot from a tight angle, they continued their strong play into the second half, with Nketiah putting the ball in from close range.
However, they faltered after an hour when Oleksandr Zinchenko and Ben White were replaced at fullback. After being rattled by Mitomo’s goal and the hosts’ subsequent strong run, Martinelli completed a long-range play with a shot that deflected off Sanchez’s legs and appeared to put the game beyond Brighton’s control.
When Mitoma appeared to have made the score 4-3, Mikel Arteta’s team appeared concerned until the VAR judgment. This was because William Saliba was being too careless on the fringe of his own area, giving Ferguson the opportunity to score again.
Before reaching the halfway mark of the league season, Arsenal must navigate a challenging January. Tottenham and Manchester United will come after Newcastle.
They still have two games left against second-placed Manchester City, and Arteta will seek to improve the defensive flaws that were exposed on the south coast.
High for the Year for Seagulls Despite Losing
The Seagulls won 3-1 at Southampton on Boxing Day after the World Cup break, but they will be disappointed with their sluggish start here.
Sanchez’s mistakes contributed to Arsenal’s third and fourth goals, but Roberto de Zerbi’s team finished strongly after seizing an opportunity to benefit from a decline in the performance of the Gunners after White and Zinchenko were replaced.
Ferguson, 18, was a handful on just his third substitute appearance in the Premier League. He was astute enough to capitalize on Saliba’s oversight to offer his team a chance at a comeback.
Despite Mitoma’s unfortunate failure to score twice, the Seagulls finish 2022 in ninth place, which is a record for them at the end of a calendar year.
