Whether it be awakening from a New Year’s Eve hangover, or a half-time rollicking from Mikel Arteta, Arsenal had shifted gears.
The stagnation on the ball, lack of tempo and, in David Raya’s case poor errors, from the first half had been ironed out.
It was a set-piece — Arsenal’s 10th league goal this season via the ploy — and Ethan Nwaneri who were the main architects to a victory which sets the north London club on the right foot going into 2025.
With a nine-point deficit to leaders Liverpool going into the match, who still have a game in hand, the Gunners could ill-afford to have dropped any further points here.
Doing so would have been close to handing Arne Slot’s men the title as a belated Christmas gift. Arsenal are far from perfect and will need to improve as the season goes in if they are to really usurp the Reds before season’s end.
But there were promising takeaways, such as Nwaneri’s rise to the task at hand. On his first Premier League start, he had a part involvement in both of Arsenal’s second-half goals.
Bryan Mbeumo scored his ninth home goal with a fine finish from the right-hand side
Gabriel Jesus found the net in consecutive games for the Gunners for the first time since 2023
Arsenal shot into the lead with a Mikel Merino strike following another set-piece routine
His corner-kick on 50 minutes was flapped at by goalkeeper Mark Flekken, who made a mess of it. Gabriel Jesus struck the ball, which deflected off Sepp Van Den Berg into the path of Mikel Merino who scored.
Just four minutes later, Nwaneri jinked inwards and curled a cross into the box. Nathan Collins headed the ball out to Gabriel Martinelli, and he scored.
It was the actions of a 17-year-old who, after seeing his fellow academy mate Myles Lewis-Skelly reach prominence in his three recent consecutive league starts, is eager to make his own mark.
Nwaneri became the youngest-ever Premier League player, aged 15 years and 181 days, against Brentford on September 18, 2022. This was his first start in the league, over two years on. Some wait.
The injury to Bukayo Saka has left a gaping hole at right wing which someone needs to try fill. This was Nwaneri’s big audition for the main role — and, although there is still more to come from him, he has certainly flung his hat forward.
More broadly, Raya, who is arguably the best keeper in the league, had a display he will know was way off his usual standards.
An errant Martin Odegaard pass was intercepted by Christian Norgaard. The Bees captain drove forward to release Bryan Mbeumo, jinking in from the right with Riccardo Calafiori in front of him.
The Italian aimlessly backpedalled, allowing Mbeumo a sight goal. He sneakily dragged the ball inside Raya’s near post with a left-footed drive on the edge of the box.
Gabriel Martinelli grabbed a confidence-boosting goal to send the travelling fans ballistic
Arteta’s team selection for the north London club’s first match of 2025 took all by surprise
Raya’s positioning ought to have been better. But it was to get worse for him. Keane Lewis-Potter’s shot, straight at the Spaniard, was spilled through the goalkeeper’s hands.
Time seemed to have stood still as Raya sprinted to his goal line to pull off a spectacular diving claw motion to wrest the ball off the line.
It was a poor error redeemed by the spectacular. Luckily for him, those lapses were not to be costly, Gabriel Jesus scoring in the first half to level the game going into half-time.
This was Raya’s first match against his former employers — he was ineligible to face Brentford last season as he was on loan from the club — and the home fans revelled in his misfortune.
Arteta’s team selection for the north London club’s first match of 2025 took all by surprise.
Kai Havertz was not in the squad due to illness, Declan Rice started on the bench because of fitness management and teenager Lewis-Skelly was dropped for Riccardo Calafiori.
The omission of Havertz, reportedly because of illness, was a big blow for the Gunners. He is a key source of their goals.
Arsenal started sprightly, boxing the opposition into their own half. Jesus enjoyed much of the ball in the first 10 minutes, relaying the ball across both sides of the box.
On his first Premier League start, Ethan Nwaneri had a part involvement in both of Arsenal’s second-half goals
This was David Raya’s first match against his former employers and the home fans revelled in his misfortune in the first half
The Bees accepted ceding possession, sensing there would be opportunities on the counter-attack. That proved true, Mbeumo set free by Damsgaard to put Brentford a goal ahead on 13 minutes.
That lead was nearly doubled just before the half-hour mark. Keane Lewis-Potter’s shot, straight at Raya, spilled by the Spaniard before that last-ditch dive on the line.
The Gunners finally started to kick into gear and got themselves back into the match through, in effect, a human game of pinball. The ball ricocheted in an all manner of ways before Thomas Partey struck a shot at goalkeeper Mark Flekken.
He spilled the ball and Jesus finished with a diving header.
That kickstarted the Arsenal rejuvenation thanks to those two goals within the eight minutes following the break.
Martinelli grew into the game, marching forward with vim, as the visitors thrived with the opening gaps afforded by their healthy lead.
In the end, it was straightforward for the visitors. But Arteta will know his side can build on this going into 2025.
