Arsenal slumped to a first loss of their Premier League title defence and it was a shocking, heavy one at high-flying Brighton and Hove Albion as Mikel Arteta accused the Gunners of not “respecting the game”.
After four straight wins for the champions, the 3-0 defeat at Amex Stadium on Saturday (Sunday AEST) felt as if it came out of nowhere.
Pascal Gross and Charalampos Kostoulas scored in the first half with shots from outside the penalty area, before Chema Andres completed the win with a header at the back post from Gross’ corner as unbeaten Brighton moved third, just two points off the lead.
“A very disappointing result and performance,” he said. “Full credit to Brighton in the manner they performed and went about the game.
“They were another gear from us in the basics of the game. They were always first in the first duel, in the second actions, second balls, and they started to play from there.
“And on top of that, when we had the ball, especially in our own half, we were extremely poor technically, not respecting the game and the game principles you have to apply against a team that want to press you man to man.
“That never gives you the option to dominate and control the game in the manner you want. And then when we had big chances, we didn’t put them away.
“We have to make sure we learn the lesson because this can’t happen again.”
But it completed a brilliant week for Fabian Hurzeler’s Brighton, who won 5-0 at Coventry last week and came from two down in midweek to win 3-2 at Manchester United in the EFL Cup.
“We have to have the belief to compete with the best teams in the league,” Hurzeler said of an outfit who currently look as good as anyone in the English top-flight.
Manchester City, the other team to win their first four games, can go three points clear by beating Sunderland on Sunday.
Tottenham’s winless start to the season continued following a 3-2 loss at home to Aston Villa, following a off-season spending spree exceeding $500million AUD.
Johan Manzambi, a 20-year-old attacking midfielder who starred for Switzerland at the World Cup, made his first start for Villa and scored the opening goal against the run of play in first-half-stoppage time.
He set up another for fellow new signing Nicolas Jackson, before Emi Buendia’s long-range strike in the 79th sent Villa on their way to a first league win of the campaign.
Conor Gallagher and Jan Paul van Hecke grabbed late consolations for Spurs — their first league goals this season — but it is now two draws and three defeats in the league for Roberto De Zerbi’s team, who also lost in the League Cup this week.
De Zerbi, with pressure building on him already, said he didn’t speak to his players after the game “because I didn’t want to say anything.”
“I was very disappointed, very sad, very frustrated for the performance,” De Zerbi said, “because we can’t lose this game in this way.”
New boys Coventry finally won their first Premier League match after a 25-year absence, edging a 1-0 victory at Nottingham Forest, courtesy of Jay Dasilva’s 55th minute goal and a late Forest late equaliser from Igor Jesus being denied controversially by a VAR review.
Goalkeeper Carl Rushworth provided the assist as he became the second goalkeeper in Premier League history to set up a team’s first goal.
Newcastle scored twice in the first seven minutes — through Lewis Hall and Joe Willock — to set up a 2-1 victory over previously unbeaten newly promoted Hull, while Thierno Barry’s 11th-minute goal was enough for Everton to beat Ipswich 1-0.