Arsenal stretched their unbeaten run in all competitions to 12 games with a 3-1 win at Brentford courtesy of goals from Gabriel Jesus, Mikel Merino and Gabriel Martinelli.
On an afternoon when the Gunners fell behind early, they eventually ground down their opponents before going for the kill early in the second half to return to second in the table.
Here’s what the managers, players, pundits and stattos made of the action…
Arteta on his side showing patience…
It’s a big win. They’re a really good side, very well coached and they’ve been exceptional at home. Especially when you go a goal down early in the game it becomes a mountain to climb, but the team remained patient. We had to manage the situation emotionally. We started [the second half] really well, we took advantage of that and we were very clinical in the box. We probably had to step back a little bit but we looked OK.
Source: premierleague.com
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Thomas Frank on his side’s performance…
We did a lot of things right. Overall, it was a good performance, the first half was extremely good, I really likes how we played, we were very, very brave on the ball, created some good opportunities and got out of the pressure quite easy. I also think we broke their high press as well and we defended well. Overall we did well, it was the finest margins that we need to do better. We scored a great goal, just before the equaliser it was like this [small] then we’d be 2-0 up, I know it’s a mistake from David [Raya]but it’s small margins and then a different game. We need to do better with the 1-1 goal. If you want to beat Arsenal, the second best team in the country right now, one of the best in Europe, we need to do everything right, or close to. We can do better on the first one, the second one is a corner and I need to look more into it – they are very good at it, probably the best team in the world at it, and something to learn from. The last one, I think we can also do a bit better. Overall, I’m happy with the performance against a top team that punished us.
Source: TNT Sports
Brentford (0.32) 1-3 (2.07) Arsenal
— The xG Philosophy (@xGPhilosophy) January 1, 2025
Brentford’s Vitaly Janelt on the test posed by Arsenal…
A difficult game, a very good first half. In general, we kept them quiet on chances, we spoke before the game about everyone performing an eight or nine out of 10 and then we have to win the set pieces better, this was one of the biggest things we said before the game and we lost the set piece battle. We played a very good first 45 minutes, at half time we always say the first five to 10 minutes we have to be on it and we conceded a set piece goal on 50 [minutes] and then [again] five minutes later. Then it’s difficult to come back against this team.
Source: Brentford Twitter
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Gabriel Jesus on whether Arsenal can win the title…
Yes, for sure. The previous two years was amazing, we didn’t win the league but we were there fighting, to play this competition is already hard, imagine to fight for the title. I’ve been there, I can see this team is great now, everyone is a good player, amazing players, I’m sure we can go there and fight for the title. It’s still early, we just need to keep playing well and keep winning the games, that’s it.
Source: TNT Sports
Brentford 1-3 Arsenal 📈
Arsenal enjoyed a great start to 2025 with a comeback victory over Brentford in the opening Premier League game of the year.
theanalyst.com/2025/01/bren…
— Opta Analyst (@optaanalyst.optajoe.com) January 1, 2025 at 7:32 PM
Arteta on Nwaneri’s first start in the Premier League…
Ethan’s played here before, so that’s a nice story, to get back to this one, I think he was really composed, really determined, taking risks, taking initiative. Very impressive.
Source: Arsenal.com
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Martin Keown on Ethan Nwaneri…
Ethan Nwaneri is definitely going to get those chances with Bukayo Saka not being available. It’s all there under the bonnet waiting to come out. This is a really exciting prospect for Arsenal. Another kid out of the academy. It’s really important that you have those players in the group demonstrating the quality coming through the academy.
Source: TNT Sport
Ethan Nwaneri misplaced just two passes across his 75 minutes on his first Premier League start for Arsenal. pic.twitter.com/lsirpqZCyW
— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) January 1, 2025
Gabriel Jesus on not losing when he scores in the Premier League…
It’s a record you know but me personally I don’t look to this. I just want to keep winning and scoring and helping the team, the club, to be there always fighting for the title.
Source: Arsenal.com
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Arteta on illness affecting the squad…
These things happen, I mean, in this period there’s always things; throat infections, viruses, so I tried to delay the line-up as well as far as possible because you can get up in the morning and have a surprise unfortunately. With Kai [Havertz] it was obvious, he wasn’t feeling well at all and he had very clear symptoms so stay away from it, put him in a car and go back to home.
Source: Post-game press conference
Arsenal haven't lost a Premier League game against London opposition since 2023 💪 pic.twitter.com/aHkf5B2m2b
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) January 1, 2025
Arteta on Mikel Merino’s performance…
Very good, it’s because he deserves it and the type of game that we have to play and the amount of density that they defend when they are deep requires people with a lot of threat in the box and he’s a master of that and we believe with this unit on the left we can have the dynamics that we wanted so, very good, he scored a very, very important goal again he’s always there, he’s a big threat, so, great to have these options.
Source: Post-game press conference
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Karen Carney on Martinelli needing to step up in Saka’s absence…
I’ve said that Arsenal need to go and get another left winger and a lot of people might say that’s pretty harsh on Gabriel Martinelli but he might be 23 but he has also played 145 times in the Premier League. For me now, this is your time, you’ve got to step up and particularly with Bukayo Saka out and tonight he has but you have to keep doing that. He’s experienced. He has to be the guy that creates a goal or scores a goal and he has done that today and he’s got to keep doing that.
Source: TNT Sports (via BBC Sport)
🎶 Our number 6 is the king of Brazil! 🎶 pic.twitter.com/Yy62VjnhX6
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) January 1, 2025
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Michael Owen on Arsenal sharing goals around the team…
Arsenal don’t have enough players who score a lot of goals, they tend to spread them around a little bit. They’re going to have to up their game from now on and that started tonight, the last couple of weeks Jesus has been banging them in. Good for them today to go away from home and score three goals.
Source: premierleague.com
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Ian Wright on Arsenal’s attackers coming good…
I’m delighted to see those two players [Martinelli and Jesus] finding form at a time when Arsenal need it most. They are scoring goals, playing well and contributing. They’ve realised this season how important their contribution is going to be, you just hope it can continue for both of them.
Source: premierleague.com
In Arsenals last 12 games. They’ve conceded 9 goals:
⚽️ Mbeumo – 0.06xG
⚽️ Sarr – 0.04xG
⚽️ Jimenez – 0.04xG
⚽️ Emerson – 0.09xG
⚽️ Inacio – 0.05xG
⚽️ Neto – 0.02xG
⚽️ Nketiah – 0.05xG
⚽️ Mateta – 0.21xG
⚽️ Wan-Bissaka – 0.41xG9 goals from…
— Monty (@AFC_Monty_) January 1, 2025
Arteta very clear on the positives of MM23 in the team, he will get better but that was decent showing plenty heart and closing down , just get upto speed of game and he will be great player
That X.G stat about goals conceded is mental.
Was about to say the same thing!! I feel like it needs to be fact checked because if we keep that sturdiness we solidify 2nd at least and hopefully push on in a cup.
It really is. Especially when over half of the xG against is from two goals and so we have conceded 7 goals from about 0.35xG. Either we are incredibly unlucky or our keeper is just throwing the ball into his own net!
Yeah but it’s also a load of subjective bollocks, so believe what you like, but personally there’s no way Eddie’s header was 0.05. For him maybe yeah, but as a chance on its own, no way….
That last stat from Monty is nonsense… He’s only totalling the xG of the actual goals. Which is ALWAYS going to be significantly higher than the xG.
I think you mean the total xG of actual goals will always be significantly lower than the xG.
The stat shows seven of the recent goals conceded have all had a low xG. That is because they were mostly tricky chances or from distance. That is because they have been scored on the counter or when teams have been restricted to shooting from far.
We do not often give up easy chances and that is also a good thing
I found it compelling and supports my perception that we’ve been unlucky with those chances flying in. It also raises a question about shot stopping…
I do think it is misleading in the sense that it ignores the simple truth that teams don’t necessarily or even most often score from their best chances. When you look at total xGA over the month of December, we conceded 3 goals and had a total xGA of 2.5. If you include November, we conceded 7 goals in the last 2 months with an xGA during that time of 6.3. So, slightly unlucky but not grossly (For comparison, Liverpool were more unlucky in the last two months overall, conceding 12 goals from an xGA of 9.7.). For the individual… Read more »
It’s not nonsense, it shows that other teams are burying low percentage shots against us recently– our opponents have been on a roll of great finishing against us. It isn’t sustainable and should change if our luck evens out.
The goal today and the one from Mateta were avoidable with better defending. The Nketia goals was mental and one time in a hundred attempt.
five in a hundred attempt if XG is to be believed!
Given some the negative comments recently, I compared Saka and Martinelli based on Transfermarkt and WhoScored.com data.
I wonder if I made a mistake or not, but it seems to me that Martinelli is a more efficient contributor than Saka. (at least in the EPL)
I compared Goals (penalties excluded) and Assists and the minutes they played.
Quite interesting… (if I’m right)
Saka needs 171 minutes to score a goal or give an assist, while Martinelli needs 168.
This could be correct but I do not believe the analysis should stop at G/A.
Let’s just hope that all Gabis continue like this !
Saka also takes most right-wing corners, whereas it’s usually Rice from the left. Martinelli absolutely has a place in this team i think.
Over their careers, they are tied at 0.53 non-penalty goals+assists per 90. However, Martinelli peaked in 0.65 in 2022-2023, and is right at his career average so far this year (0.52), while Saka’s has increased his numbers over his career, and is at 0.99 so far this year. But as BelgianGooner says, this does not fully capture what each brings to the team.
That’s a crazy stat, how many we’ve conceded from how few xG.
That said I’m a bit scared it will be more vs Brighton, my favourite defender on the planet Jurrien Timber will be out meaning it will probably be Partey on the right, a possibly still hobbled Rice at DM and one of three left backs who all have something that makes you slightly nervous about playing them (Calafiori – pace; MLS – experience ; and Zinchenko – Zinchenko). 😬
Zinchenko gets way too much disrespect. He’s an important player for a decent national team, has won many titles and was literally transformative in his first season with us. He’s had a few clangers but it’s not like Mustafi coming in.
I love him but he’s not exactly Jurrien Timber or Ben White in terms of his defensive solidity. I don’t see what controversial about saying that.
Alexander-Arnold is a terrible defender (this is based on my watching him play for years–beginning with Leroy Sané going past him about 15 times in a half–not on what the internet says). Pretty clearly, what he brings outweighs that and his team compensates for his weaknesses. I am not saying Zinchenko adds as much as Alexander-Arnold and, of course, what he does bring is different. But just as Alexander-Arnold had Wijnaldum or now Konate to cover for him, we have Declan Rice and Gabriel. I don’t want to see Zinchenko matched against Salah or Brian Mbuemo and I don’t think… Read more »
Exactly, which is why I was saying above that I’d much rather see him, or Calafiori, or MLS (for now) – all immensely talented players – in lineups with Rice and a proper, defensively solid RB to balance out our LB’s defensive weaknesses. Which is why I said both White and Timber being out and Rice being hobbled is far from ideal playing away against a tricky side like Brighton. It seems some might have interpreted the light hearted jab about him sometimes Zinchenko-ing a defensive assignment as a criticism, which is ironic because more often I’m the one defending… Read more »
No Saka, no Havertz, no White, Rice having his minutes managed with a broken toe. We’re going to get a fully fit squad in spring, win something big, and everybody will be asking what Arteta did to “make Arsenal click again” as if we haven’t known all along
Just for the record, Michael Owen, regardless what comes out of his mouth, is a penis.
Can I upvote repeatedly?
I tried button bashing already.
Should be over a thousand up-votes, i think my button is broken
He is a little scrote. Any chance he gets to have a swipe at The Arsenal he opens his silly little mouth.
He truly is the kid you wanted to duff up at school but couldn’t be bothered because the satisfaction of watching him squirm didn’t quite equate with six of the best from the Headmaster for your trouble.
From Frank: “we created some good opportunities and got out of the pressure quite easy”. Utter fantasist. Straight out of the Pulis/ Allardyce/ Dyche school of total bollocks.
Well here we are in 2025, 6 points behind the leaders. Liverpool have been the best team in the land, but plucky Arsenal have just kept swimming, plugging away and getting results. Today was a perfect microcosm of that ethos. A goal down at a ground where only Nottingham Forest have won this season, we turn it into a comfortable 2 goal margin by sheer persistence. That’s how we scored those goals today. Every time there was a transition on for them, we swarmed the ball carrier, kept play alive and eventually had some kind bounces fall our way. The… Read more »
When you described our toughest away fixtures, there’s one on the 10th of May which could be tricky. I’m guessing you didn’t mention that fixture explicitly because it was obvious from the context!
I meant to mention that as a reason for optimism but forgot. Could be 89 all over again!
Oof, can you imagine?!
Just the win we needed to get this year up and running. Bummer on Timber missing the Brighton game. Any news on when Benny Blanco is likely to be back? It feels like he’s been out forever. I really miss his presence and shithousery.
I don’t think anyone knows yet. Mikel said months but ‘don’t expect it to be half a year’ after his operation at the end of Nov. Lot depends on how he reacts to the op, wouldn’t expect him to be back before end of Feb though.
Thought Partey had another
Oops clicked send too early. Must still be high on the euphoria of starting the year with a win!
With Timber booked I hope we don’t revert back to Partey at RB for Brighton.. he’s looked really solid since he’s been in CM. However, not sure what other options we’ve got given White and Tomiyasus ongoing injury challenges. Thoughts? Maybe Calafiori at RB and Zinchenko / Lewis Skelly at LB? Kiwior? Tierney?! Who knows!
Just a point. When’s the last actual amazing team goal , individual brilliance from us, seems we getting a habit of scrappy goals and fortuitous rebounds.
Attacking wise we seem poor relative to the last two years
Some people are never satisfied.
3rd goal today was pretty good. 2nd at West Ham. Saka’s goal vs Liverpool. The whole second half vs Leicester. Calafiori’s screamer at Etihad. I could go on.
The types of goals you seem to be wanting more of are harder to come by when the opponent has 10 men behind the ball throughout, which is often the case for Arsenal these days. Seemed like forever that the narrative was “they have no Plan B” – now we’re scoring “scrappy” goals and getting tons of them from set pieces, which is a very effectively, intentionally implemented Plan B. It may be subtle, but there’s a distinction between striving for continual improvement and simply always wanting more. And yes, it’s perfectly logical sometimes to be happy with results and… Read more »
But we are still in with a shout of the title. That’s all that matters me old mate.
Second half of last season – 16 wins from the last 18 games. Do that again this season and we’re champions.
Not if Liverpool keep playing out of their minds. In fact, if one of those two non-wins is a loss to Liverpool, I’d say we might be cooked. They are 14-3-1 right now, 45 points. If they win on Sunday that’s 48 to our 39. 16 wins = 48 points, of course if the others are draws and we with the 19th remaining game, that’ll be tough to keep up with. But hopefully they fall apart down the stretch!
A solid three points.
That kit is (kind of) growing on me too: the kids bought me the shirt and shorts for an unexpected Christmas pressie.
The wife and kids love it, so who am I to argue?
COYG