Brentford were full value for Keane Lewis-Potter’s set-piece equaliser here, and for the 1-1 draw that ultimately cuts Arsenal’s lead from six points to four.
They even looked likelier to win it at the end, Gabriel Martinelli’s late chance only coming after Arsenal required crucial interventions from Cristhian Mosquera and Declan Rice.
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That is why Brentford are still seen as one of the Premier League’s acid tests, perhaps even more testing than before. It is the most classic battle, the one teams have to really work through.
Failing to win this fixture isn’t a sign you won’t win the title, but it’s a match that goes some way to showing your mettle; of how you can really go through the gears in a title race.
Arsenal’s minimalism wasn’t enough here. It may end up serving as another warning.
Mikel Arteta will nevertheless be most frustrated that it should have been enough. Arsenal had the lead through Noni Madueke’s fine header, only for the team that normally shuts down games to see themselves opened up.
Brentford just forced them open. On conceding the goal, they immediately upped it, in so many ways. It’s rare to see Arsenal so threatened on set-pieces.
Maybe part of that was down to the absence of William Saliba, but Arsenal are at the point
And it’s hard not to think they’re starting attack left too much out there; that they didn’t get going until too late in the game, allowing Brentford that margin.
That could be seen in the fact they had just one shot in the first half, their lowest in an opening 45 minutes since a 5-0 thrashing to Manchester City in August 2021.
It is a balance that Arteta still has to figure out, as he too often leans towards the controlled. The sense remains of a team trying to win the league on calculated probabilities rather than true end product; of being so close now that the coach is now trying to control too much.
You almost extend it to the expenditure.
Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya, right, denied Thiago, number nine (John Walton/PA)
Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya, right, denied Thiago, number nine (John Walton/PA)
One reason that Arsenal are where they are across all competitions is their squad depth, and yet there are moments when it’s hard not to wonder whether they could have used their budget in a slightly different way.
The starting attack in this game was a prime example. Good as Viktor Gyokeres and Noni Madueke are in their own way, the club have been better served pooling the money for both together and going for one “killer”, that elevated star they are still missing.
Even Leandro Trossard, brilliant as he’s been for the club, often feels like he should be the impact sub rather than the starter.
Eze was signed to offer that extra stardust, but it is going to be difficult to rise to the occasion when he is constantly in and out.
And, after that first half Arteta made the changes. Odegaard was introduced. The Norwegian did have initial impact, which helped force the opener. There was a sense of what might have been.
Madueke remains a tantalisingly frustrating player, as if there are still elements missing to complete his game. One is delivery.
There are so many occasions when he does wonders to beat his man, and often embarrasses them, only to try the same slowly floated cross that is so easy to defend against.
He perhaps saw the benefit of a more traditional effort on 61 minutes, which allowed the 23-year-old to show the productive player he often promises to be.
Arsenal’s Noni Madueke celebrates the game’s opening goal (John Walton/PA)
Arsenal’s Noni Madueke celebrates the game’s opening goal (John Walton/PA)
Arsenal’s changes had admittedly ensured that they were starting to pen Brentford in, with Odegaard looking especially lively.
It was his pressing that forced Andrews’ backline into an error, the ball then arriving at the feet of Piero Hincapie. He hooked over a fine cross, although one where Madueke looked like he might have stepped forward a touch too early. It was instead Caoimhin Kelleher who was wrong-footed, although only because Madueke showed impressive agility.
The winger arched back to loop a header across goal and into the bottom corner.
That should have been that, only for Odegaard to then look a bit more culpable at the other end. He only stuck his leg out for one of Brentford’s aerial assaults, allowing Lewis-Potter to plunder a brilliant header.
Arsenal were lucky not to concede from that route again.
Brentford are more than just an awkward team, or a physical one. There’s so much calculation everything they do, as befitting a modern club built on analytics. You can almost see the science behind every move, the manner the ball is played into areas of probability.
A favoured attack is one of the wingers immediately playing a first-time ball across the opposition area on the break, which tends to instantly cause angst.
Arsenal had to be on their toes, none more so than when Brentford’s pressure saw Raya attempt to throw the ball to Rice. The delivery was loose, though, allowing Mathias Jensen to pick the midfielder’s pocket, turn, and swerve in the most inviting ball for Igor Thiago.
It really couldn’t have been better. Thiago no doubt thought he had the header to match, and he probably should have scored, but Raya had already scurried back to get across and down for one of the saves of the season.
It was a crucial recovery. It may prove important in the long run. Rather than such individual moments, though, Arsenal will be looking at those two points.
If they wanted more, though, they should have done more