“He had fewer touches than David Raya and was just a passerby throughout his time on the pitch, he also lost the ball 7 times”- Arsenal icon Thierry Henry insists Mikel Arteta must be looking to drop 4/10 rated Arsenal flop after Brighton draw yesterday

“He had fewer touches than David Raya and was just a passerby throughout his time on the pitch”- Arsenal icon Thierry Henry insists Mikel Arteta must be looking to drop 4/10 rated Arsenal flop after Brighton draw yesterday

Less touches than Raya: Arsenal must look to bench 5/10 star after Brighton

Arsenal dropped their first points of the new Premier League season in bizarre circumstances as the Gunners drew 1-1 with Brighton at the Emirates Stadium.

Mikel Arteta’s men looked good value for a first-half advantage at the break, Kai Havertz darting onto Bukayo Saka’s through ball and lobbing the ball over the goalkeeper.

Sadly, the game changed in the second half when Declan Rice was sent off in controversial circumstances.

It was a moment in the game that totally changed the momentum. At one stage, the Seagulls were enjoying 81% of the ball over a five-minute period and left north London with a point thanks to Joao Pedro’s neat finish from close range.

Still, Arsenal could have won the game. Havertz had a wonderful opportunity in the second half but was denied by Bart Verbruggen before the German turned provider, whipping the ball into Saka who couldn’t quite get his feet in the right order and he was denied by the Brighton goalkeeper again.

In all, the Premier League title challengers did well to pick up a point but they will be ruing that incident with Rice in the second half.

Why Rice was sent off

In the first half, the club’s record signing was given a booking for a strong challenge. Rice slid in, won none of the ball and was rightfully given a caution.

Whether he was rightfully given a second yellow, however, is up for debate.

The former West Ham man had a coming together with Joel Veltman on the left-hand side of the pitch and in Brighton’s desperation to take the set play quickly from deep within their own half, Rice stopped them from doing so.

Veltman kicked out, Rice nudged the ball away and chaos ensued. By the letter of the law, the £105m man was rightfully sent off. What will specifically frustrate the Gunners is the lack of consistency.

In the opening 45 minutes Pedro also kicked the ball away, and at a far greater distance than Rice. Was he cautioned? No, he wasn’t.

So, once all was said and done, Arsenal were forced to finish the clash with ten men and Rice will now miss a vital away clash against Tottenham after the international break.

Who is set to replace Rice against Spurs

This red is a bitter pill to swallow for those of an Arsenal persuasion. Away at Spurs, Rice would be vital but he won’t be available. Nor will Mikel Merino.

Cruelly, he was injured in his very first full training session with the squad. Gabriel reportedly landed him on which caused a shoulder injury that will disrupt the Spaniard’s first few weeks in the capital.

As a result, it’s likely Jorginho will come into the team and partner Thomas Partey. However, once Rice is back and Merino is up to full speed, the Ghanaian simply has to be dropped to the bench.

His performance against Brighton, although not abysmal, showcased why. In truth, Partey hasn’t started the season awfully either. He did, after all, score that important goal against Aston Villa a week ago.

The trouble is that his lack of athleticism hurts this Arsenal side, as does his lacklustre giveaways of possession.

Against Brighton he played some nice passes, notably into Saka on the right-hand side but in tight spaces inside their own half, he found it difficult to evade Brighton’s press and was guilty of ceding possession.

Partey vs Brighton

Minutes played

90

Touches

39

Accurate passes

19/25 (76%)

Key passes

0

Crosses

0

Long balls

3/5

Dribbles

1/1

Aerial duels won

1/1

Ground duels won

3/8

Possession lost

7x

Fouls

2

Tackles

1

Interceptions

5

Partey did so on seven occasions throughout the match, once every 5.5 touches of the ball. From a player in his position, you would surely expect better. Handed a 5/10 match rating by GOAL’s Charles Watts, the reporter summed up his display aptly: “Struggled in possession. Made some good recovery tackles, but was slack with the ball at times.”

That was summed up by a pass success rate of 76%. It’s not great at all but it was a tally that ended up being the third-best on Arsenal’s team. That’s a rather alarming statistic for a side that love to keep possession.

To make matters worse, the 31-year-old only won three of his eight duels. On that evidence, it’s no surprise Merino has been brought in. He won more duels than any other player in Europe’s top five leagues in 2023/24.

So, while Partey will have to stick around for the trip to Tottenham in a fortnight, barring a remarkable display there, he must be taken out of the side long-term