Arsenal stretched their Premier League result in seven issues with a 4–2 win at Brighton capped via a well-worked breakaway target from Gabriel Martinelli.
Goals from Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Eddie Nketiah had Arsenal 3–0 up via the forty seventh minute and reputedly cruising to a very easy win, however Kaoru Mitoma stored Brighton within the sport with a target 25 mins from time.
Odegaard then supplied an elegant throughball for Martinelli to race part the period of the sphere and poke right into a fourth to revive the three-goal merit.
Brighton change Evan Ferguson claimed his first Premier League target within the 77th and Mitoma idea he had arrange a disturbing end with an 89th-minute strike, but it surely used to be disallowed for offside.
Despite an unnecessarily fearful finish, the win supposed Arsenal took complete benefit of second-place City’s slip-up previous because the protecting champions had been held to a 1–1 draw at house in opposition to Everton. Third-place Newcastle, in the meantime, noticed its six-game profitable streak finish with a nil–0 draw in opposition to Leeds.
“It’s still a long, long run to go,” Arsenal supervisor Mikel Arteta stated of the name race. “My pleasure comes once I pass within the dressing room and the gamers are speaking about what they must have performed higher lately. And that implies they know we will be able to nonetheless play higher and be higher.”
Brighton had gained 3 of its remaining 4 however Saka put the guests forward after just a bit greater than a minute when he reacted temporarily to regulate a deflected shot from Martinelli sooner than sidefooting into the online.
Odegaard used to be as soon as once more Arsenal’s major orchestrator in midfield and just about arrange Martinelli for a moment with some exceptional footwork within the space however ended up doubling the lead himself within the thirty ninth. The ball fell to the Norway world within the space after a nook and, whilst he scuffed his shot into the bottom, it bounced completely to sail into the online.
Nketiah then reputedly put the end result past doubt simply after the restart when he used to be readily available to ship in a rebound from Martinelli, making it two targets in two begins for the Arsenal academy product within the absence of injured striker Gabriel Jesus.
Brighton refused to give up, although, and Mitoma stayed simply onside to assemble a go within the space and slot a shot previous Aaron Ramsdale to offer the hosts some existence.
Suddenly Brighton used to be pouring ahead, however Odegaard made them pay with a wonderfully weighted first-touch go that set Martinelli transparent at the counter. The Brazilian outpaced Tariq Lamptey from midway sooner than completing low below Robert Sanchez for the fourth.
Arteta exuberantly celebrated the target at the touchline, however there used to be nonetheless various drama for him to bear.
Poor protecting from William Saliba allowed 18-year-old striker Ferguson to sneak in and poke a milestone target throughout the legs of Ramsdale.
The Gunners then seemed to be in actual risk of throwing away two issues when Mitoma diverted his moment of the sport into the ground proper nook.
But the jubilant environment used to be abruptly quelled via VAR intervention sooner than the guests navigated six mins of added time to tighten their stranglehold on first position.