Memory is a funny thing. Last time Brighton played Arsenal at the Broadfield we took them apart with a counter-attacking masterclass that saw us beat them 4-2. Rewind to six months prior though and the Gunners quite frankly embarrassed the Albion at the Emirates on their way to a 5-0 victory. This game felt like an amalgamation of those two results, Arsenal with just enough quality and control to win a tough game, Brighton with enough guile and ability to take the UEFA Women’s Champions League winners all the way.

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For a full recap of the match action courtesy of Luke Nicoli head over to the Albion website: HERE
Match highlights are available on the official WSL YouTube channel: HERE

Brighton & Hove Albion

• Let’s get this out of the way early – did Arsenal deserve to win the game? By any relevant metric, and indeed by the ‘eye’ test, yes they did. There’s no doubt it was tight throughout though and but for an outstanding save by Daphne van Domselaar from a Carla Camacho header Brighton would have come away with a draw that would have been hard to argue against.
• The goal itself was rather fortunate, but the Albion will be disappointed with how they allowed the opposition to create the chance in the first place. Two short passes down the centre of the pitch and some neat footwork from Caitlin Foord completely bypassed the midfield and Charlie Rule who had stepped out of defence. Suddenly Arsenal were three on two with Olivia Smith well positioned on the right-hand side of the box. As she crossed the ball in, Marisa Olislagers’ attempt to cut it out deflected past the helpless Chimaika Nnadozie and into the net. Of course it was unlucky, one of those things, but you can only get unlucky if you let them roll the dice in the first place. Dario Vidosic will I’m sure be looking at how to stop some of these opportunities at source as the season continues.
• In general though the defence deserves a ton of praise once again. Not the be all and end all statistic of course, but they restricted the Gunners to 1.2 xG – a figure only bettered by Manchester United’s defence when Arsenal faced them away from home in a 0-0 draw. Manchester City, Aston Villa and even Lyon couldn’t hold them to a lower amount.
• Staying with that particular stat, it’s no coincidence that in the three games where we have had an xG under 1.0, we have lost. Two of them by one goal to nil and all of them by a single goal. We simply need to score more and create more chances – easy right! It’s not through lack of trying, but injuries, ineligibility and sometimes just plain bad luck has hampered the Albion’s ability to put up more than we can keep out. Honestly, this writer thought we were an attacking threat (or even two) short after losing Nikita Parris and, as it stands, that concern is playing out on the field.
• Curse begone, hoodoo banished, hex broken! It has been a perceived issue for at least a season, if not longer, that Brighton do not play well in ‘big stadiums’. For the first 15 minutes or so it looked like the jinx had carried over to the 25/26 season, but after the goal, not only did the Seagulls not capitulate, they actually grew into the game. As time wore on it felt like they belonged there, toe-to-toe with European and domestic giants on one of the grandest stages in the women’s game. The amount of belief that can be taken from the performance overall should be immense, and if the Albion play like that at, let’s say, the King Power or even, dare I say it, the Amex, then look out WSL.
• It would be difficult to pick out individuals from the performance, nobody let themselves or the team down, nor did anyone stand head and shoulders above the rest. However, it is no coincidence that Brighton are a better team with Fran Kirby on the pitch. I actually asked Dario about the correlation between having Fran and the team playing well versus not having Fran and the team seeming to dip in form, leading to the club writing a follow-up article on the subject. It’s hard to disagree that games that have gotten away from the Albion in the past are being reined in somewhat by players like Fran with their quality and WSL experience. Often a ‘could have’ or ‘maybe’ benefits from a ‘been there done that’.
• Maelys Mpome took a point-blank blow in the face from a Caitlin Foord cross. The ball knocked her unconscious and she seemed to be out for a minute or two whilst the medical teams (including Arsenal’s) worked on her. Then of course there was the process of ensuring that she had not suffered any extensive damage to her neck, head or face, and she was carried off on a stretcher accordingly. It was concerning for all involved and those in attendance and Maelys received a round of applause from the entire stadium as she left the field. It does appear that she was awake and talking with teammates in the dressing room after the game, so that is a positive sign. We wish Maelys a speedy recovery from the after effects of such a scary injury.

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Arsenal

• The biggest compliment Arsenal could be paid is that, on balance of play they deserved the win, and that for the first 15 minutes, they had Brighton on the ropes. The remainder of the game was a reminder as to why they currently sit 5th in the WSL table. Granted there was some huff and puff, one or two chances well saved by Nnadozie, but otherwise – the Albion defence were relatively comfortable. Ultimately they won because they just had that extra bit of quality when push came to shove – but if you can sign players for £1M then you ought to have the luxury of the better team on paper.
• Katie Reid is so impressive. At just 19 she is easily up there with Michelle Agyemang as a long-term England prospect, but of course defenders don’t get the same fanfare as attackers. How long until she’s knocking on Sarina Wiegman’s door you wonder?
• For the most part the fans and staff were very friendly, minus a couple of gestures aimed at us as we departed on the coach. Nothing serious, and to be truthful, there were far more Arsenal fans waving us off pleasantly than the two or three who also waved but didn’t use all their fingers. The aforementioned applause for Maelys as she left the field was something we assume is widespread in the women’s game, but even so, it felt genuine and it was certainly appreciated.

Other Business

• Much like the Albion, Kirsty Dowle made an inauspicious start to the game with some ticky tacky fouls given and one or two definite throw-ins awarded incorrectly – which is also on the assistants of course. The biggest compliment is that the officiating ceased to be a factor for much of the remainder of the game – which is actually to their credit when it happens, all too rarely. That’s two refereeing performances that we’ve given positive reviews this season – what is going on!
• We took around 100 fans up there on two coaches and current estimates put the figure at around 250 Brighton fans at the Emirates in total, which would likely be the second highest away day in our history. Members of the atmosphere section were keeping the chants going, but with such an open plan stadium, no instruments, and members spread around the block – perhaps we couldn’t collectively quite generate what we’d have like to in terms of noise.
• There was a little bit of ‘restlessness’ shall we say on the coaches. There were a lot of new people, which is of course fantastic, but mixed in with what we might call the ‘established’ away support there was the odd vexed comment. Our suggestion would be that those who book first – IE the more active season ticket holders – fill the first coach, and those that come later fill the second, should the same situation arise. Doing it alphabetically just didn’t seem to work, particularly when it split friend groups or even families with different surnames.

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The SheGulls Podcast will be recorded tonight and released soon – so for more analysis of both the Arsenal (WSL) and West Ham (Subway Cup) games and a preview of Southampton at home away in the Subway Cup – do give it a listen.

See you all soon as always!