The Arsenal boss had called for a reaction after Monday’s 3-0 defeat at Crystal Palace, but Brighton’s 2-1 home defeat led them to miss the opportunity to move up to fourth place again. Later on Saturday, rival Tottenham advanced three points to the final qualifier of the Champions League with the 4-0 victory at Aston Villa. The Gunners were once again below par in the first 45 minutes, falling behind Leandro Trossard and hitting even further after the half-volley break of Enock Mwepu. As soon as Martin Odegard’s long-range shot bounced off in the 89th minute, Arsenal really raised the stakes, but, as Arteta admitted, it was too late. He then criticized his team’s lack of reaction on Monday night and their inability to impose themselves in the match, especially in the first half. “The first half was very poor again,” he said. “The reaction we wanted to show and everything we said we did not succeed on the pitch. “We were sloppy with the ball, we were second best in many situations, we did not show any purpose or build momentum in the game, we did not play at the right pace and we did not change the game that Brighton suggested today and the first chance – the only chance they had – they scored a goal. “We created a cold atmosphere with which we felt uncomfortable. When we tried to change it, it was great not to give up, but it was too late. Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player FREE ATTENTION: Snapshots from Brighton’s victory over Arsenal in the Premier League. “The fans were here and again great. You can see the moment we gave them something; but we played a game where you could not see the purpose, the intention of what the team was trying to do. We did not give anything in the first half and that depends on us. “It was not a behavioral problem, it was a problem of courage that we showed to play and we did not have that purpose. We did not have this intention to attack and intervene and cause the situation we wanted. to look at each other too many times instead of taking ownership and doing what we have to do. “You can not play like that.” It was another ineffective appearance by striker Alexandre Lacazette, who failed to score a goal in any of the last three games, but Arteta insisted the Gunners’ offensive problems were a “collective issue”. However, he accepted the change of tactics he had made for the match, with Emile Smith Rowe in a slightly deeper role and the decision to put Granit Xhaka at left back and throw Nuno Tavares out of shape did not work as he had hoped. “The spaces we wanted to attack suited Emile to play in that position and because we thought the space would be there for Granit to use, which it was. But we did not use it.” It was a great moment because that would change the game. Momentum and energy. When you do not play so well, you need something to go and we hit the crossbar twice and the goalkeeper made some great saves. It did not happen, but it’s up to us. Arteta in Martinelli’s head that is not allowed with the VAR
This change was forced by an injury of Kieran Tierney, while the absence of Thomas Partey in the midfield adds to Arteta’s problems. Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Mikel Arteta was disappointed with Arsenal’s 2-1 defeat to Brighton at the Emirates and said he expected a better response from his players after their previous defeat by Crystal Palace. With Chelsea, Manchester United and West Ham coming in three of their next four games, Arsenal have a lot of work to do to win the Champions League, having a few weeks ago shown favorites to finish in first place. four. Reflecting on the task ahead, Arteta said: “With the whole team available we knew how difficult the challenge was. These two injuries make the situation more complicated. But we can not see that because we can not look for excuses. What happened today depends on us, the players we have and the way we prepared the game. “What happens next; We criticize ourselves a lot because we deserved it [lose] because we were very bad in the first half and we were going up. “We know that this road leads us nowhere, especially where we want to be. We have everything to play in the last eight games. We must have this level of energy and envision the beautiful challenge ahead, do not sit back. and let’s see what happens. “

The week that Arsenal’s top four hopes were completed?

Sky Sports’ Peter Smith: Just a few weeks ago, it seemed that Arsenal were the favorites for fourth place and the long-awaited return to the Champions League. But in the space of six days, their hopes of returning to Europe’s top inter-club competition have been hit hard. The defeat by Crystal Palace on Monday Night Football was bad. Arsenal, harassed and tormented by their rivals in London, never succeeded and made costly mistakes. It was the worst performance they had made since the first weeks of the season. However, a young team is prone to inconsistency, and the real issue was not this loss but how they would react. The response that Arsenal fans saw on Saturday would have worried them. While Brighton did not bring the same frantic pressure to the Emirates that Palace showed at Selhurst Park, Arsenal were still slow outside the blocks again, sloppy in possession and unrelated in attack, with the forced reshuffle caused by his absence Thomas Partey and Nuno. The Tavares form does not work. Gabriel Martinelli was sent off after an offside marginal free kick, but it’s hard to beat Brighton. As soon as Martin Odegard made it 2-1 in the 89th minute, Arsenal showed the required levels of intensity. With injuries, games and points now counting against them, Arsenal have everything to do if they want to review neighboring Tottenham in the race for fourth. Summer is coming, they can look back this week until the moment their encouraging season broke out.

The rest of Arsenal’s games

April 16 – Southampton (a) April 20 – Chelsea (a), live on Sky Sports April 23 – Man Utd (h) May 1 – West Ham (a), live on Sky Sports May 8 – Leeds (live), live on Sky Sports May 12 – Tottenham Hotspur live on Sky Sports May 16 – Newcastle (a), live on Sky Sports May 22 – Everton