ARSENAL ENDED A difficult week in miserable fashion as they lost 2-1 to Brighton and Hove Albion at the Amex Stadium.
First-half goals from Lewis Dunk and Glenn Murray secured all three points for the home side, despite Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang halving the deficit before the break.
The result is certain to pile more pressure on Gunners manager Arsene Wenger, who was the subject of angry chants from visiting fans demanding his departure. Arsenal went into the match on the back of consecutive 3-0 defeats to Manchester City in the EFL Cup final and Premier League, and they found themselves in more trouble when Dunk broke the deadlock seven minutes in.
Murray’s header, his sixth goal in 2018, put Brighton two up after a mistake by Laurent Koscielny, prompting an angry response from the travelling supporters. Aubameyang got a goal back but it was not enough to prevent a fourth defeat in a row in all competitions for the Gunners, marking their worst run since 2002 and leaving them facing a major challenge to finish in the top four.
Arsenal began the match on the front foot but found themselves behind seven minutes in, with Dunk sweeping the ball into the net from 12 yards out after Shane Duffy had beaten Petr Cech to a corner.
The Gunners keeper saved a good Pascal Gross shot as Brighton threatened again, with Dunk and Duffy both heading over from promising positions as the visiting defence failed to deal with routine set-pieces. With 26 minutes gone, they gifted the home side their second goal.
Koscielny’s wayward pass was sent out wide to Gross, and his curling cross from the right was headed down and beneath the body of Cech by Murray. ‘We want Wenger out’ was heard loudly from the away end but Aubameyang snatched a lifeline out of nothing two minutes before half-time, flicking Granit Xhaka’s strike into the net despite the best efforts of Mat Ryan.
Koscielny almost levelled the match just before the break, rattling the left-hand post with a firm header, and only a flying Ryan save stopped Mesut Ozil blasting home just before the hour mark. Referee Stuart Attwell made a smart call not to award a penalty when Xhaka went to ground in the area, although Sead Kolasinac was fortunate to escape punishment for a shoulder challenge on Ezequiel Schelotto that ended the Brighton full-back’s game.
Wenger threw on Danny Welbeck in the closing stages but there was to be no salvation for the Gunners, who are 13 points adrift of fourth-place Tottenham with just nine matches remaining ahead of their huge Europa League trip to face AC Milan.
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This guy is completely overratted
@jay bernard: don’t know how he warrants a contract of that size given his achievements in the game. He needs to start scoring regularly especially if the Wissam Ben Yedder rumours are true. WBY is a real fox in the box, Deschamps really rates him.
Best goal tally for 21 and under in the EPL, La Liga & Seria A in what was a shocking season under two different managers. 200k going to 300k based on incentives. Manchester born and bred. He’ll turn out to be some player yet
An absolute joke.
It’s 200k a week max as per Simon Stone – reliable United journo
@Brian: and you think that even £200,000 is acceptable for a player that scored 10 league goals last season. He’s English!!! He has been overhyped and overrated since they Day he broke into the first team by the British press, £200,000 per week for a very average player that would be more suited to playing for a team like Newcastle, Everton or Southampton. Mid table player at best, that shouldn’t be earning anything over 100,000 never mind 200,000 or 300,000.
@Devilsavocado: And eventually he will be destroyed by the British press too, I wish Utd would sell him on now
Beans Beans Beans
@Alan Brazil: is all you eat. Stand well back!
The club is a circus. Run by clowns who aren’t football men
@munsterman: and if you look at the nonsense that ich bin Brendan has been scribbling up there, it seems they are supported by a few clowns as well…..
@Devilsavocado: haha! G!mp
@Ich bin brendan: come on,, seriously mate, you really don’t believe the nonsense that you were writing in your previous posts do you?? There isn’t a club that finished in the top 5 above Utd that the lad would get into as a first team player. Not a single club that will be in the champions league next year had a bit of interest in buying him, he’s at best a bench player for Utd, but a 200,000 a week bench player??? WTF is going on at Utd that they offered that much money to him?? Where else was he going to go, they easily could have halved that and even then he should still consider himself lucky to be wearing the Utd jersey,, come on, I can’t be the only one who sees this….
@Devilsavocado: quit looking for validation. I’ll correct myself in that he didn’t score v pool in their 3-1 spanking but everything stated is fact inc. turning the best rb inside out and scoring in every debut. Barcelona were being touted as making an official approach, how much of that is being true is as truthful to say not a single team were, it would take a team of that stature to pull a local lad away from his local team. Apart from Kane for Spurs there isn’t a top 5 team that would produce an academy player like him. 200,000K is daft money but that’s the state of the club atm, not many want the Glazers there but that’s what they’re working with. I’m delighted he’s there for another 4 yrs, he’s got the wage now it’s upto him to start earning it, I believe he will.
@Ich bin brendan: ok fair enough, you have your opinion on the matter and people that actually know a bit about football have there’s. Let’s be honest here, I doesn’t matter that your opinion is obviously that of a delusional fan that can’t look at things without your fan glasses on but that’s ok,, we will leave it there and I’ll let you get back to your colouring book and crayons, there’s a good boy,, don’t stay up to late… :) validate myself, ha ha ha ha ha..
@Devilsavocado: “that actually know a bit about football” you have me stumped, you’ve trouble validating your opinionated drivel. “Ha ha ha” like I said before, G!mp
He’s got to start delivering on his promise . A lot of cash for a man still not scoring regularly but he does have the potential to be an absolute world class player I just hope he does start getting 30 odd goals a season .
On his debut he’s scored 2 in the EPL, same in his Europa, 1 Champions league and on his derby debut. Also turned the best rb in the country inside out to score against their biggest rivals, with the golden glove winner in goal!
@Ich bin brendan: can throw in his debut in the EFL & FA Cup as well. So every cup comp available to him. Calling him over rated is being bias, he’s proven he’s capable, needs consistency with age.
Reminds me of Ian Rush
His nose is offside
Even as a man utd fan, I think he doesn’t deserve this, prove your worth then get the money, he didn’t prove anything last season to deserve half this money.