Arteta accuses players of failing to 'respect the game' after suffering first defeat of season

Mikel Arteta accused his Arsenal players of failing to "respect the game" in their 3-0 defeat to Brighton at the Amex Stadium.

Goals from Pascal Gross, Charalampos Kostoulas and Andre Chema consigned the champions to their heaviest Premier League loss in three years and abruptly ended their winning start to the campaign.

Arteta felt his players were found wanting in the physical battle on the south coast and also bemoaned their sloppiness on the ball as they were overwhelmed by Brighton's pressing.

"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."

Speaking in his press conference, Arteta added: "There are a lot of moments when the ball is 50-50 and it changes hands, and most of the time it was for them.

"Sometimes there were some technical errors involved that opened us up in a really difficult way, but that's something to learn.

"From the first throw-in you could sense it, it was so clear. We put ourselves in trouble one time, two times, three times and we needed to get out of that much quicker than that. That's one of the biggest lessons that we have to take from the game."

The defeat ends a run of eight consecutive Premier League wins for Arsenal. Arteta, although critical of his side's display, called for perspective ahead of the three-week international break.

"It's not going to take away what the team has done and the boys have done in the last six or seven weeks since coming back from the World Cup," he said.

"With 18 players coming back, what we've done, the way we've competed and the amount of games we've won has been remarkable.

"But this is a big lesson for all of us to understand what it takes to win at this level."

How Arsenal were outfought

Analysis by Sky Sports' Nick Wright:

It is not often that Arsenal are outfought but they could not live with Brighton's intensity and the numbers backed up Arteta's criticism.

Brighton's pressing was incredible in the first half and the Gunners Arsenal could not match their level in the second period either.

According to Opta, the hosts won possession in the final third nine times. It is the second-highest total by any side in a Premier League game this season. It is also the most by any side against Arsenal in any game either this term or last.

Arsenal were left disorientated by the blizzard of early Brighton pressure, with summer signing Bruno Guimaraes finding it particularly difficult, and could not recover their poise.

Having smothered Arsenal with their pressing, Brighton asserted their dominance from set-pieces too, scoring their third goal from one of several dangerous corners and, ultimately, claiming revenge for their acrimonious defeat in this fixture last season.

Hurzeler: We were horrible to play against

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler savoured a "special" performance from his side as Brighton moved up to third, only two points behind the Gunners.

Their total of 16 goals is the highest by any Premier League side in the first five games of a season since Manchester City hit 19 at the beginning of the 2022/23 campaign.

"Beating the current champions and the best team in England is something special," he said.

"But it's not because the result is special, it's the performance. The boys showed real togetherness and intensity.

"They were horrible to play against and that's because we did the basic things right. Overall I was very pleased with the performance.

"I think we deserved to win. It's a moment the players and the staff can enjoy because they worked hard for this but it's also important why we had this success, because we did the basics right and we were brilliant in the duels."