Mikel Arteta might not always think so, but everything seems to be going Arsenal’s way. This was another exceptional day for their top-four prospects and, while they had enjoyed the luxury of watching rivals stumble in recent weeks, here they asserted those credentials all by themselves. Brentford were flattered by Christian Nørgaard’s added-time goal and the tone could hardly have been more different from the opening weekend of the season, when Arsenal were pummelled by the same opponents and appeared a hopeless case.
On this occasion it was one-way traffic in the direction of Brentford’s penalty area. Arsenal would have enjoyed seeing West Ham drop points against Newcastle at lunchtime and were patently hungry to capitalise, barely letting up from the first whistle. A completely dominant first half did not yield enough in terms of clear chances, and much less where goals were concerned, but they re-emerged with the same tempo and deserved their reward.
It arrived three minutes after half-time through a sublime finish from Emile Smith Rowe. Arsenal’s lack of depth is little secret, Arteta emphasising afterwards that their Champions League hopes may hinge on staying injury-free, but their left flank is the one obvious exception. The suspension of Gabriel Martinelli, whose red card at Wolves caused a disproportionate amount of angst given the significance of the win in which it arrived, meant a start for the England international and he had oozed menace from the beginning.
Then he took Alexandre Lacazette’s sprayed pass and, from midway inside Brentford’s half, made for the box. Sergi Canós and Kristoffer Ajer both looked fearful of conceding a penalty and Smith Rowe wriggled between them, snaking a precise curler into the far corner via David Raya’s fingertips.
It was Smith Rowe’s 10th goal of the season in all competitions and he has become a matchwinner when afforded the chance. Exactly the same can be said of Bukayo Saka, who wrapped things up with a vaguely similar effort. Brentford had begun to threaten in something approaching a concerted fashion but, straight after Yoane Wissa had squandered a promising position, Arsenal broke. Sections of the crowd felt Thomas Partey had delayed his pass left to Saka, who had run 70 yards to receive it, for too long; in fact his decision making was perfect, Saka taking it in his stride before raking a sweet drive inside the same upright.
Saka and Smith Rowe are the subjects of a terrace anthem to the tune of Status Quo’s “Rockin’ All over the World”, which received a hearty airing after full-time. “The supporters love that song and everybody loves that song because they are players that have been raised in our system,” Arteta said. “I am really happy that we have players that take the responsibility and manage to win games for us. It is really impressive at that age.”
Equally eyecatching is the fact that Arsenal, callow though they might appear, operate with such control. Nørgaard’s scrambled effort with the last action, awarded by VAR, did not reflect their level of control and the extent to which they put the squeeze on Brentford. To that point, it should be said that Thomas Frank’s players held out manfully for long periods. The otherwise outstanding Martin Ødegaard should have settled the game before Saka but, beyond that, Arsenal were limited to half-chances even if there was always the sense Brentford were on the stretch. This Arsenal side plays so intensely that, in most opponents, something eventually has to give.
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“We defended fantastically in the first half,” said Frank, although the fact Brentford, without the injured Ivan Toney, could barely exit their own territory by the interval boded ill. A stream of corners, blocked shots, handball appeals and teasing crosses was not sustainable to resist for 90 minutes. Frank felt Brentford were better in possession during the second half but they did little with it and next Saturday’s meeting with Newcastle, which could see a debut for Christian Eriksen, now assumes huge proportions.As do most of Arsenal’s assignments from here. A point off Manchester United with two games in hand, fourth place may be theirs to lose. “We are a little bit closer today because we won our game,” Arteta said before adding a cautious kicker. “We cannot look too far. Things change very quickly.”