Georginio Rutter’s own goal proved decisive as [Arsenal beat Brighton 2–1 at Emirates Stadium](https://arseblog.news/2025/12/report-arsenal-2-1-brighton-inc-goals/) to make it three league wins in a row, although Mikel Arteta later admitted his side had made life harder than it needed to be.
Martin Odegaard’s first-half opener, a crisp left-footed strike from the edge of the box, gave the Gunners a deserved lead. When Rutter inadvertently headed Declan Rice’s corner into his own net seven minutes after the break, the contest appeared settled. But, as has too often been the case in recent weeks, Arsenal allowed their opponents back into the game.
Diego Gomez pulled one back after converting the rebound from Yasin Ayari’s effort against the post and, were it not for a superb full-stretch save from David Raya to deny Yakuba Minteh, Brighton might yet have escaped with an unlikely point as nerves spread around the stadium.
Speaking in his [post-game press conference](https://www.arsenal.com/news/every-word-artetas-post-brighton-presser-4), Arteta reflected: “Very happy with the performance, individually and collectively, so dominant. We were a big threat, so very pleased with all of that. But the margins should have been much bigger.
“I mean, with the amount of situations, chances, open chances that we generated through the game, it should never be 2-1. But that’s the Premier League, that’s the step that we have to make.
“I think the first shot that they had, they scored the goal and then David has to make another save to maintain the result. But what I like is that we’re having a lot of issues, we’re dealing with it in an incredible way.”
Those issues have become a familiar theme this season. Every time one player returns from injury, another seems to drop out. When Arsenal announced their team sheet, there was no recognised right-back. In the end, Declan Rice stepped into the breach, deputising for the injured Jurrien Timber and Ben White.
The disruption did not stop there. In the warm-up, Riccardo Calafiori aggravated “something very awkward that happened” in training the previous day, forcing Arteta into a late reshuffle and the inclusion of Myles Lewis-Skelly.
“Yesterday we lost Jurrien, today we lose Calafiori in the warm-up, Declan has to play as a full-back and you see the performance that he put in. So, that’s the spirit and that’s how much our players want it,” reflected Arteta.
One positive was the return of Gabriel Magalhaes, who made his first appearance since sustaining a hamstring injury in mid-November.
On coping with the ongoing fitness problems, Arteta said: “At the moment we’ve survived six months, so, let’s see. There’s another five-and-a-half to go. So hopefully things will get better.
“The good news as well, for example, we got Gabi earlier than expected, which is great. The medical staff, I think they’ve done an incredible job the way he pushes himself as well, that’s what we need because we lost one and we got somebody else back. Overall, I think the performance was, against a really good side, very, very good.”
Having watched Arsenal dragged into an unnecessary penalty shootout by Crystal Palace in midweek – who, like Brighton, scored with their first effort on target – the home crowd grew increasingly tense in the second half. That anxiety was heightened by Manchester City’s earlier win and fed into a scrappy spell in which Arsenal dropped deep, struggled to retain possession and invited pressure.
Arteta accepts that it is something his players must learn to manage.
“We have to be able to go through that with normality, with showing composure and understanding that you don’t do that well, you are not efficient in the opponent’s box, then you have to be incredibly good in your own, and that’s a good way as well to go through that.”