Brighton 3-0 Arsenal: Superb Seagulls stun the Gunners who lose top spot
· Yahoo Sports
Fabian Hürzeler hands Mikel Arteta his first defeat of the season in front of a record crowd at The AMEX with an incredible performance and home thrashing thanks to goals from captain Groß, Kostoulas. and Chema Andrés.
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Following on from their 3-2 Carabao Cup win at Old Trafford, Brighton continued their fine form at the start of the 2026/27 campaign as they shocked the Gunners and climbed into the Premier League’s top three.
Meanwhile, Arsenal lost top spot for the first time since claiming the crown, as Mikel Arteta’s side suffered an early setback in their attempt to retain the Premier League title.
As it happened
The hosts started on the front foot at the Amex against the champions, with Ferdi Kadıoğlu’s first opportunity of the day coming in the second minute after a weak clearance by Riccardo Calafiori, but Brighton’s first effort was powered well over the bar by the Turkish international.
The Seagulls came close to opening the scoring in the sixth minute as they dispossessed the Gunners in the visitors’ half, before Charalampos Kostoulas managed to get a shot off just inside the Arsenal box, forcing David Raya into action early on in the contest.
As the match reached the 25-minute mark, neither side had really created any clear-cut chances, with the hosts performing well to frustrate the league leaders on the south coast.
It was captain fantastic just after the half-hour mark, as Pascal Groß opened the scoring for the hosts with a sublime, low, curling right-footed effort that cannoned off the inside of the woodwork and into the back of the net. It was a real setback for Arteta’s side in their bid to continue their perfect start to the 2026/27 season.
On the brink of half-time, Arsenal had a golden opportunity to equalise, but neither Martin Ødegaard nor Bukayo Saka could convert from close range. The Seagulls instantly punished the champions, as Diego Gómez drove forward before setting the ball off to Kostoulas, whose wonderful long-range strike beat Raya and nestled into the bottom-left corner.
Five minutes after the interval, Kostoulas was once again causing problems for Arsenal’s defence. He picked up the ball and created space on the right flank before firing a low effort across goal, but it sailed just wide of the far post.
The Seagulls extended their lead to three when a Pascal Groß inswinging corner found the head of Chema Andrés, who was unmarked in the Arsenal penalty area. He nodded home for his first goal since arriving at the club.
Fabian Hürzeler’s side showed no signs of slowing down as they nearly found the back of the net for a fourth time. Pascal Struijk leapt highest and beat Gabriel Magalhães in the air, but his headed attempt ended up wide of the post, resulting in an Arsenal goal kick.
In the 77th minute, Kai Havertz had a golden opportunity to potentially spark a late comeback after Viktor Gyökeres’ lobbed pass fell into the path of the German striker. However, he couldn’t get the better of Bart Verbruggen, who stood strong to preserve his clean sheet.
As the encounter drew to a close, Hürzeler’s side’s relentless performance proved too much for the lacklustre reigning champions, who headed into the first international break of the season with their perfect start over.