Mikel Arteta confessed his Arsenal side were forced to endure a tense finale as they secured a vital but nervy 2-1 victory over Brighton & Hove Albion at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday 27 December 2025. The win, achieved despite a severe defensive injury crisis, propelled the Gunners back to the summit of the Premier League table.
Defensive Woes Force Arteta Into Survival Mode
The matchday was overshadowed by a series of defensive setbacks for the home side. Jurrien Timber was ruled out with an injury sustained on Boxing Day, while a fresh blow came in the warm-up when Riccardo Calafiori was forced to withdraw. With Ben White and Cristhian Mosquera also unavailable, Arteta was compelled to deploy midfielder Declan Rice as an emergency right-back.
"At the moment we have survived six months," Arteta stated post-match. "There’s another five and a half to go, so hopefully things will get better. What I like is that we have a lot of issues and we’re dealing with it in an incredible way." The manager praised Rice's adaptability, revealing the player's immediate acceptance of the unfamiliar challenge.
A Game of Two Halves at the Emirates
Despite the disrupted backline, Arsenal started strongly and seemed in control by half-time. Martin Odegaard opened the scoring with his first goal of the season, before Brighton's Georginio Rutter turned the ball into his own net to double the lead.
However, the Seagulls fought back after the interval. Diego Gomez pulled a goal back in the 64th minute, setting up a fraught final half-hour. Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya was called upon to make a crucial save to preserve the slender advantage, as the hosts failed to convert several chances to kill the game.
"We were a big threat, but the margin should have been much bigger," a frustrated Arteta admitted. "With the amount of situations and open chances that we generated, it should never have been 2-1. We should have scored the third one and then it would have been different. We didn’t, so we had to suffer a little bit more."
Consequences and Looking Ahead
The result marks a third consecutive Premier League victory by a single-goal margin for an Arsenal squad grappling with persistent fitness issues. A rare positive was the return of key defender Gabriel in the second half after a near two-month absence.
For Brighton, the defeat extends a poor run of form, with just two points taken from their last five league matches, seeing them slide to 12th. Manager Fabian Hurzeler lamented the slow start but found encouragement in his team's second-half response.
Arsenal's next test is a significant home clash against third-placed Aston Villa on Tuesday, where their depleted resources will be tested once more as they aim to maintain their position at the top of the table.
