Bruno Guimaraes and Ezri Konsa spoke out after Arsenal's 3-0 defeat at Brighton on Saturday.
Arsenal
Arsenal after their 3-0 humbling by Brighton. (Image: Getty)
Bruno Guimaraes and Ezri Konsa haven't been at Arsenal long - but both already recognise Saturday's 3-0 defeat at Brighton was "not acceptable" by the club's standards. The Brazilian midfield maestro, who struggled to make an impact on his first Premier League start for the Gunners, insisted that such a performance must never be repeated if Mikel Arteta's champions are to defend their crown this season.
He said: "We were not good enough, so far off our level this time. We are very disappointed, we have to learn from our mistakes because today we were far away off our level. We were too sloppy with the ball; we didn't win any duels. We cannot accept this while wearing this shirt of a champion and we want to win the game.
"We cannot repeat this; it's a lesson for us because I think we've been on a good run so far. We've won every game but not this one. Like I said, it's one to forget for us but we have to learn from what happened today."
Following the match, Arteta revealed he sensed Arsenal weren't performing after their opening throw-in.
The head coach took aim at his own players for 'disrespecting' the basics of football on the south coast.
Guimaraes acknowledges the squad is now reflecting on their failure to press both Pascal Gross and Charalampos Kostoulas for Brighton's two opening-half strikes.
"We gave them too much time on the ball, we know the quality that they have," added Guimaraes. "They were two amazing shots to be fair but we can do better and we have to do better.
"We cannot give them too much space, we cannot lose the ball in a dangerous area and like I said, bad day, I've not been too long here but it feels like we can't accept this."
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Arsenal must now wait three weeks before they get the opportunity to respond with a home fixture against Leeds. Nevertheless, Guimaraes, who netted a spectacular effort in the recent 2-0 victory at Sunderland, is determined not to let the defeat overshadow his impressive start to life in N5 following his £75million summer move from Newcastle.
Ezri Konsa
Ezri Konsa spoke out after the match. (Image: Getty)
He went on: "I have to adapt, and I think I've been doing great to be fair but I think today is one to forget for me and the whole team.
"Today was a bad day at the office for everyone. I think I'm quite good in terms of adaptation with the club, I'm getting there.
"Now we have to focus on the national teams but when we come back, we have to ensure this does not happen again.
"We have to learn from our mistakes, wearing this shirt this is not acceptable, this is not the level we want but now we have time to focus on the national team, and when we come back, we have to win games. We have to forget this and improve, we have to say sorry to the fans because it wasn't good enough."
Fellow new signing Konsa echoed Guimaraes' sentiments, conceding that Arsenal's display had fallen well short of the required standard.
He said: "It wasn't good enough. We have high standards here and we let them go today. But it is important we use this time now to reflect as individuals, to know that when we do come back there is a lot to learn and a lot to fix from this game.
"We are very disappointed to lose and to concede three goals is not like us. As a defender, I pride myself on keeping clean sheets. We did not do that to the best of our abilities. We have to move on very quickly and focus on the game after the break.
"We conceded two goals from outside of the box. They were two very good strikes. But there were moments in those two goals where we could have pressed the ball more, put more pressure on the ball.
"It's the Premier League, when you give quality players outside the box time and they shoot, it can go in. These are lessons that we need to learn from. We are still growing, still improving and we only want to get better."