Arsenal defeated Brighton 2-0 to take the top spot in the Premier League
With goals from Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz in the second half, Arsenal defeated Brighton & Hove Albion 2-0 at home on Sunday, moving the north London team back to the top of the Premier League rankings. Arsenal's victory put them one point ahead of Aston Villa, who now sit in second place with 38 points. A point farther behind is third-place Liverpool, who play rivals Manchester United later on Sunday.
Though Brighton had triumphed in their previous three visits to The Emirates Stadium across all competitions, most of the action took place within their box as Arsenal became the first club this season to avoid a clean sheet against Roberto De Zerbi's squad. With goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen holding strong, the Seagulls, who slid to ninth, survived wave after wave of Arsenal raids without scoring a single goal in the first half.
"They are a fantastic squad and play excellent football. It's challenging to oppose them. We were aware of our strength in this mansion. It went well today, according to Havertz. As the two sides headed into halftime with a score of 0-0, Gabriel Martinelli came the closest to scoring for Arsenal, but Arsenal was also guilty of failing to take advantage of their opportunities.
However, defender Jan Paul van Hecke mishandled a corner ball into the path of the unmarked Jesus at the far post, ending Brighton's fight eight minutes into the second half as the Brazilian striker headed home. Arsenal kept pounding Brighton's goal with shots, not willing to settle for a one-goal advantage. Havertz's header went over, and captain Martin Odegaard—who was playing on his 25th birthday—had a shot palmed away.
Although Brighton had been playing passively the entire time, they did have a fantastic opportunity to equalize in the 82nd minute when Kaoru Mitoma dribbled the ball into the box and slid past his defender, but Pascal Gross missed the target. In the 87th minute, the Gunners executed a counterattack to secure the three points. Eddie Nketiah, a replacement, placed Havertz through on goal, and the German attacker fired a shot into the bottom corner. Havertz's Arsenal career began poorly as he struggled to score goals; however, in his last seven appearances, he has scored four goals. "I'm happy as an offensive player, it's always nice to score or assist," he stated. "The first one or two months were difficult but I tried to get the best out of myself every day."
