Brighton man returns with MOTM display as Arsenal handed second consecutive defeat
Enock Mwepu chipped in with a goal and assist for Brighton as they handed Arsenal a second Premier League defeat this week.
Mikel Arteta would have been hoping for a big response from his players after their shock 3-0 loss to Crystal Palace on Monday. But their top-four hopes were further dented as Brighton ran out 2-1 winners at the Emirates.
Mwepu, a summer arrival from Red Bull Salzburg, got his first Brighton start since January after returning from a hamstring injury. And he came back with a bang, picking up the man of the match award in north London.
Arteta made two changes to his starting eleven. Albert Sambi Lokonga replaced the injured Thomas Partey in midfield, while Gabriel Martinelli came in for Nuno Tavares. The change in formation saw Granit Xhaka operate at left-back.
There were three changes for the visitors. Yves Bissouma, Mwepu and Moises Caicedo all came in, with the latter getting his Premier League debut. That saw Tariq Lamptey, Solly March and Neal Maupay drop out.
Leandro Trossard gave Brighton the lead in the 29th minute, registering his fifth goal of the season. Lewis Dunk found the impressive Mwepu with a looping pass, and the Zambian took a good touch before picking out Trossard. The forward gave Aaron Ramsdale no change with an emphatic finish into the top corner.
Arsenal thought they had equalised on the stroke of half time. Brighton failed to deal with a Bukayo Saka corner, and Martinelli went on to head it over the line from close range. This sparked wild celebrations among the home crowd, but then VAR intervened.
After almost four minutes, they came to the decision there had been an offside in the build up. Arsenal looked deflated by the disallowed goal as they headed down the tunnel at half time, but they didn’t deserve the equaliser after a poor showing in the first 45 minutes.
Mwepu continued to shine in the second half, nutmegging Emile Smith Rowe before cantering down the right flank.
Dunk then towered above Lokonga to meet a Pascal Gross corner. Despite being far out, he forced a decent stop from Ramsdale.
The home crowd began to roar their team on, sensing the need for an improvement. Arteta responded too, replacing Smith Rowe with Eddie Nketiah.
Arsenal concede second goal
Mwepu gave Brighton a crucial second goal on the stroke of the 67th minute. Caicedo put in some good work down the left before picking out his team-mate on the edge of the box. Mwepu met it first time, powering a right-footed effort into the bottom corner. Ramsdale got a hand to it but couldn’t prevent the goal.
Arteta opted to bring on Nicolas Pepe in Martinelli’s place with 16 minutes left as he looked for a way back into the game.
Graham Potter also turned to his bench, with Adama Lallana and Lamptey coming on for Bissouma and man of the match Mwepu respectively.
Arsenal began to threaten late on, with Lokonga rifling a shot just past the post. Martin Odegaard then smashed a free-kick against the crossbar, with Nketiah also hitting the woodwork on the follow up.
Arsenal finally got on the scoresheet in the 89th minute. Odegaard had an effort from far out and it took a big deflection, sending it over Robert Sanchez and into the far corner.
Arsenal hounded Brighton in the final stages as they pursued a dramatic equaliser. Nketiah connected with a cross in stoppage time but saw Sanchez push it away with an acrobatic save.
Brighton ultimately held firm to pick up their eighth league win of the campaign, pushing them up to 11th in the table. Arsenal, meanwhile, remain level on points with Tottenham. The Gunners could go three points behind their rivals if Antonio Conte’s men beat Aston Villa on Saturday evening.
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