Champions Arsenal were humbled at Brighton and Hove Albion as they suffered their first Premier League defeat of the season.
But as off-key as the Gunners were, ample praise must be given to the Seagulls who backed up their fantastic comeback win over Manchester United in the Carabao Cup with this even more impressive scalp.
They scored three unanswered goals either side of half-time to stun Mikel Arteta’s men and move up to third in the table ahead of the international break.
Brighton were full of intensity and pressing and it was no surprise when it was they who opened the scoring just past the half-hour mark. Pascal Gross, outstanding against United the other night, saw a shot from the edge of the area glance a post on its way past David Raya.
Charalampos Kostoulas then made it 2-0 right on the cusp of half-time as he turned and smashed the ball past Raya. The timing of that goal felt huge, with Arsenal given a mountain to climb.
The visitors had barely had a sniff at goal but would have taken confidence from being only one goal behind at half-time. Instead, they needed to mount a huge comeback but it never really looked like happening.
Arsenal made no changes at the break, perhaps surprisingly, with Arteta deciding to keep faith with those players he chose from the start. Sadly for him, it didn’t pay off and Brighton would ultimately kill the game off just before the hour mark.
Chema Andres headed in from a Gross corner to kill off any brief Arsenal hopes of a comeback. It could have got even worse for the champions had Pascal Struijk not fluffed a golden chance for a fourth.
It didn’t matter, though. Brighton were well worthy of this win and it will give them a monster confidence boost upon their domestic return in three weeks. Their beaming manager Fabian Hurzeler reflected: “It was a special win. Not only because we played the best team in England but because of the performance. I am really proud of my team.
“It’s always important to enjoy these moments. We were horrible to play against: intensity, winning the personal duels…we have to have the belief to compete with the best teams in the league. My players really trust each other on the pitch. If one player is out then another can replace him.”
As for Arsenal, Arteta took defeat on the chin and admits the loss was a “big lesson” for him and his players.
“First of all congratulations to Brighton,” said the Spaniard. “I am really disappointed. In the first 20 or 30 minutes, the number of technical errors put us constantly under pressure. It was all related to the start.
“It’s a big lesson to learn. What the team has done since the World Cup has been remarkable. But today there is a lot to learn. Credit to Brighton for what they have done. I think we were very far from our level. The international break means we have more time to swallow because it’s very, very painful. In any game you can get highly exposed if you don’t do what you need to do.”
