Brighton 0-3 Arsenal: Player ratings as Gunners keep pressure up in title race

Arsenal picked up a comfortable 3-0 win over Brighton & Hove Albion to end Saturday top of the Premier League.

The Gunners were good value for their lead when Bukayo Saka netted from the penalty spot in the first half, and Kai Havertz removed any doubt about the result by tapping home a Jorginho cross on the hour mark. Former Seagull Leandro Trossard rubbed salt in the wounds with a delightful finish late on.

Mikel Arteta's side end the day one point clear of Liverpool at the top of the standings, with the Merseysiders scheduled to face Manchester United on Sunday.

How the game unfolded

Gabriel headed wide just 60 seconds in, but Brighton had their own half-sights of goal in the opening stages as both sides came out fast in search of a go-ahead goal.

Saka had his head in his hands after cutting inside and curling an excellent chance wide of Bart Verbruggen's post, before the Englishman's cut-back to Gabriel Jesus drew an excellent save from the Brighton stopper.

Arsenal kept coming and Jesus missed another great chance. Kai Havertz's floated cross found him at the back post but Jesus could not keep his effort on target.

The pressure ultimately led to a penalty as Tariq Lamptey took Jesus down 31 minutes in. Saka sent Verbruggen the wrong way to give Arsenal a deserved lead.

David Raya needed to be at full stretch to deny Julio Enciso as the first half wound down, but Arsenal went into the break on top and gave Brighton a few more scares before the whistle was blown.

Jesus headed another Havertz cross wide early in the second half and the German would eventually take matters into his own hands as he tapped home a low cross from Jorginho on the hour mark after Brighton had once again ceded possession while trying to play out from the back.

Brighton enjoyed plenty of time on the ball after the goal but rarely posed any real threat as William Saliba and Gabriel stood tall, and Arsenal would pounce on the counter to snatch a third late on.

Substitute Trossard found himself through on goal on a run which started deep inside his own half, with the former Brighton man bursting forwards and chipping Verbruggen to stand tall and soak in the boos from the scorned home fans.

Brighton player ratings (4-2-3-1)

GK: Bart Verbruggen - 6/10 - A handful of smart saves before being sent the wrong way for Saka's penalty. A little slow off his line at times.

RB: Tariq Lamptey - 4/10 - Started the game really well but conceded a sloppy penalty and never rediscovered his confidence. Massively bullied when trying to defend corners.

CB: Jan Paul van Hecke - 6/10 - Powerful and confident against Arsenal's nimble forwards. Held his own pretty well.

CB: Lewis Dunk - 5/10 - Some poor decisions at the back invited unnecessary pressure. Never looked in control.

LB: Pervis Estupinan - 5/10 - A really mixed performance. Played a massive role in Brighton's attacking threat but was often absent at the other end of the field.

DM: Pascal Gross - 6/10 - A creative figure in Brighton's midfield. Did his best to keep the Seagulls moving forward.

DM: Carlos Baleba - 5/10 - Spun Declan Rice for a great individual highlight but his poor passing was a problem for his side.

RM: Simon Adingra - 6/10 - Comfortably won his battle against Zinchenko and should have made more of his dominance.

AM: Jakub Moder - 4/10 - A noticeable weak link in Brighton's forward line. Found space and control really hard to come by.

LM: Julio Enciso - 5/10 - Felt pretty wasted out wide but did provide Brighton's biggest goal threat in the first half.

ST: Danny Welbeck - 5/10 - Typically impressive work rate but Arsenal's defence meant he could never get things going.

Substitutes

SUB: Facundo Buonanotte (63' for Moder) - 6/10

SUB: Joao Pedro (63' for Enciso) - 5/10

SUB: Ansu Fati (76' for Welbeck) - 5/10

Subs not used: Jason Steele (GK), Joel Veltman, Valentin Barco, Igor, Cameron Peupion, Adam Lallana

Manager

Roberto De Zerbi - 4/10 - Brighton were once again caught out trying to play around at the back, and De Zerbi didn't know how to change things up when it became evident things weren't working. Far too comfortable for Arsenal to deal with.

Arsenal player ratings (4-3-3)

GK: David Raya - 6/10 - Pretty quiet but made some smart saves on the rare occasions he was needed.

RB: Ben White - 7/10 - Defensively solid but clearly feeling more confident going forwards. Played some sensational passes in an inverted role and pulled the strings from deep.

CB: William Saliba - 7/10 - Supremely confident under pressure. Even comfortable dribbling around in his own box.

CB: Gabriel - 7/10 - Did his job well enough, but looked uncomfortable after taking a knock in the first half which will have Arteta concerned ahead of the Bayern Munich game.

LB: Oleksandr Zinchenko - 5/10 - Uncomfortable in possession and was cooked by Adingra whenever he needed to defend.

DM: Jorginho - 8/10 - Fantastic when Arsenal were on the ball. Handed plenty of time to pick out pinpoint passes and even got himself forward to grab an assist.

CM: Martin Odegaard - 6/10 - Guilty of looking for a few too many passes at times but didn't really do much wrong. Helped keep things ticking.

CM: Declan Rice - 6/10 - Looked a little fatigued and uncomfortable when asked to help Zinchenko out defensively, but still did his job admirably. Just couldn't match his high standards.

RW: Bukayo Saka - 7/10 - A lively performance which saw his excellent run from the spot continue.

ST: Kai Havertz - 8/10 - Smart and selfless movement around the final third to drag Brighton out of shape and invite those around him to get closer to goal. A tidy finish for his strike.

LW: Gabriel Jesus - 7/10 - Really involved from the left wing. Managed a few nice sights of goal and won the penalty which fired Arsenal into the lead.

Substitutes

SUB: Gabriel Martinelli (63' for Saka) - 6/10

SUB: Leandro Trossard (63' for Jesus) - 7/10

SUB: Takehiro Tomiyasu (72' for Zinchenko) - 6/10

SUB: Eddie Nketiah (89' for Havertz) - N/A

SUB: Fabio Vieira (89' for Odegaard) - N/A

Subs not used: Aaron Ramsdale (GK), Jakub Kiwior, Thomas Partey, Emile Smith Rowe

Manager

Mikel Arteta - 7/10 - Without really needing to do anything special here, Arsenal were good value for their win, although Arteta perhaps should have used the opportunity to rest some of his big names late on ahead of the Bayern game in midweek.

Player of the match - Kai Havertz (Arsenal)