Brighton 0-1 Arsenal: The Gunners almost found a way past Fabian Hürzeler’s side on Wednesday afternoon, moving them closer to clinching the Premier League title.
Arsenal currently lead the table with seven points difference (Image: Getty Images)
Arsenal defeated Brighton to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League to seven points.
Bukayo Saka’s deflected shot found the back of the net, giving Arsenal the perfect start. David Raya produced a superb stop to keep Georginio Rutter at bay in the second half.
From then on it was a war of attrition, with Mikel Arteta’s side forced to defend to secure victory. However, Manchester City were unable to get over the line against Nottingham Forest, and with this win extended their advantage at the top of the table to seven points, completing a shutout victory.
Here are the talking points about Amex Stadium:
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Mosquera struggles without Saliba
Arsenal were hit with bad news before kick-off, with William Saliba passing away after suffering an ankle injury against Chelsea. He was completely removed from the team.
Cristian Mosquera was appointed as his replacement, but it was a difficult night for the Spaniard. He received an early booking for a foul on Georginio Rutter but may have felt lucky to escape with another ill-timed challenge on the Frenchman.
In the end, he was replaced by Riccardo Calafioli just after the hour mark.
Cristian Mosquera starts in place of Saliba for Arsenal (Image: Getty Images)
Raya let off the hook
With Saliba absent, the onus was actually on Gabriel to help his fellow defenders throughout the match. And he did it right after the start, when goalkeeper Raya made an uncharacteristic mistake.
Trying to play from the back, he sent the ball straight to Carlos Baleva, who went for a bold chip. Fortunately for Arsenal, Gabriel had the foresight to get to the goal line and was in the right position to head away.
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Saka brings out 300
Baleva could have played a key role in Brighton’s opener, but then gave the Gunners a helping hand. Saka, who made his 300th appearance for Arsenal, was given too much space on the right and the Englishman cut inside to aim for goal.
His effort took Valeva’s touch and beat Verbruggen. The goal was Saka’s ninth in all competitions this season, and he also scored for Wolves last month.
England manager Thomas Tuchel will no doubt be pleased with his recent form as he looks to select his World Cup squad over the coming months.
Bukayo Saka celebrates his goal against Brighton (Image: Getty Images)
Opportunity for Brighton
Arsenal certainly tried hard to win against Brighton and the Seagulls had a number of chances.
The best of them undoubtedly fell to Rutter, who saw his curling effort narrowly evaded by Raya. Mats Wiefer also had a great chance to nod home, but his header wasn’t powerful enough to beat the Spaniard.
favorable to arsenal
Manchester City and Arsenal will not often play at the same time between now and the end of the season. So the news from the Etihad would have been celebrated by those in Arsenal’s dressing room at the Amex.
The Gunners are currently overwhelming favorites to win the title. Of course, Guardiola’s side still have a game in hand and momentum could still fluctuate as both teams will be working together. However, it is certain that Arsenal currently have an overwhelming advantage.
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