Arsenal's young creative force are promising but need service from the rest of the team

There's been a massive lack of creativity in Arsenal's midfield and attack this season.

Plenty of midfield pairs have been jammed together as Mikel Arteta attempts to solve that particular conundrum, but he's only just ditched the 3-4-3 formation that had initially served them so well before it backfired.

Willian and Nicolas Pepe have been disappointing out wide, and while there is plenty of clamour for Mesut Ozil to be brought back in from the cold, it's not a prospect that looks likely to happen anytime soon.

Instead, Emile Smith Rowe has been given a central berth in recent weeks.

The attacking midfielder, who has previously had loan spells at RB Leipzig and Huddersfield, impressed during the 3-1 win over Chelsea, buzzing around brightly up front and getting himself an assist for Bukayo Saka's strike.

Smith Rowe started again at Brighton, lining up behind Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang alongside Saka and Gabriel Martinelli out wide.

The quartet are full of bright ideas. They made smart runs throughout the first half of the 1-0 victory, but often had to backtrack with the ball either falling short or passed backwards and recycled, often to nothing of note.

That's where a player like Thomas Partey may come in handy. The Ghanaian certainly possesses more quality in the final third than either Granit Xhaka or Mohamed Elneny, but his absence through injury has meant the aforementioned duo started together again on the south coast.

They were far too passive.

Xhaka's shortcomings were made abundantly clear when he was caught dallying in possession and then skinned by Alireza Jahanbakhsh on the wing, while Elneny's passing range has no scope in attacking scenarios. The pair often interchanged passes with centre backs Rob Holding and Pablo Mari, making things in the middle of the park a little too pedestrian.

If the idea to play Saka, Smith Rowe and Martinelli was to give Arsenal more thrust on the counter, it didn't really work, especially not in the first half. The trio had little of the ball, so Aubameyang was often left isolated.

But the second half saw an improved Arsenal, who looked to exploit space more evidently rather than passing sideways and backwards. Smith Rowe created a few opportunities before Saka showed why he's so highly rated, getting past Dan Burn with ease to set up Alexandre Lacazette for the game's winner.

The trio have as much talent as needed, but the first half performance gave them little to work with. In the second half they asserted themselves more and the gap in attacking quality between the two teams became more stark, which is what makes the first half so odd.

Saka, Smith Rowe and Martinelli all have the quality to make the difference in attack and give strikers Aubameyang and Lacazette more opportunities, but central defence and midfield areas haven't given them a hope in hell.

Mikel Arteta's side need to be more assertive and confident in possession. There are match winners in their starting XI, but the amount of time Xhaka and Elneny have wasted passing sideways and backwards has to change.

More ambition is needed, and if it is shown, Arsenal can continue to pick up points and drag themselves out of this horrible hole they've dug for themselves.

But for now, in all fairness, an away win over one of their bogey teams is a good start.

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