Mikel Arteta believes Arsenal’s heavy defeat at Brighton can serve as a valuable warning after the Premier League champions were beaten 3-0 on the south coast.
Arsenal arrived at the Amex having won their opening seven matches of the season in all competitions, but produced an unusually poor display as Brighton dominated the contest and moved up to third in the Premier League.
The defeat was particularly striking for an Arsenal side that conceded just one goal across their opening four league matches. Arteta admitted his players fell well below the standards they had established during their impressive start.
“We were extremely disappointed because we were very far from what we expect and what we demand from ourselves,” Arteta said.
The Arsenal manager pointed to Brighton’s intensity and his own side’s mistakes as key factors. The Gunners struggled to win second balls, lost control in midfield and repeatedly gave the hosts opportunities to attack.
“Sometimes there were some technical errors very much involved that opened us up in a really difficult way,” Arteta said. “That’s something to learn.”
Brighton were two goals ahead at half-time and continued to threaten after the break before completing a convincing victory. Arsenal, who spent around £200m during the summer, never managed to establish the control that has characterised much of their football under Arteta.
Despite the setback, Arteta stressed that one defeat should not erase the progress made during the opening weeks of the campaign.
The Arsenal squad also faced an unusual pre-season situation, with 15 players involved in the World Cup and therefore returning to club preparations later than their team-mates.
“What we’ve done and the way we’ve competed and the amount of games we’ve won has been remarkable,” Arteta said. “But this is a big lesson for all of us to understand what it takes to win at this level.”
Brighton expose Arsenal’s weaknesses
Fabian Hurzeler’s Brighton took full advantage of Arsenal’s lack of intensity, pressing aggressively and preventing the visitors from settling into their usual rhythm.
The result also ended Arsenal’s run of nine consecutive league matches without defeat stretching back to April.
For Arteta, the immediate task is to ensure the defeat becomes an isolated setback rather than a sign of deeper problems.
“We knew how tough it was going to be today,” he said. “Credit to them for what they’ve done because they’ve overcome us and they had another edge than we did.”
Arsenal now head into the international break with their first league defeat of the season and several areas to address before returning to Premier League action.
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