Preview: Arsenal v Brighton | Pre-Match Report | News

We’re back at Emirates Stadium for our first game after Christmas as we take on Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League on Saturday at 3pm (UK).

Following a penalty shootout victory in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup against Crystal Palace, attention turns back to the Premier League as we aim for a third straight victory in the competition, as we strive to remain top of the table going into 2026.

We’ve already taken on the Seagulls this season, defeating Fabian Hurzeler’s side in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup, courtesy of goals from Ethan Nwaneri and Bukayo Saka at Emirates Stadium.

Seagulls looking to soar 

Our visitors find themselves in ninth spot heading into the contest in a tightly packed Premier League table. Hurzeler’s side are just five points off the Champions League places but only five points clear of 16th position.

A run of three wins from four games in November, as well as victories over Manchester City and Chelsea earlier in the season, saw them climb as high as fifth, but December has brought four games without a victory, three of which were at home. They were beaten by Aston Villa and Liverpool as well as drawing with West Ham United on the south coast, while their last outing a week ago brought a 0-0 draw at Sunderland.

There’s been a familiar face amongst the goals this campaign for the Seagulls, with former Gunner Danny Welbeck sitting on seven strikes in the Premier League, just three shy of his previous best in the competition, which came in 2024/25. However, due to a back problem, Welbeck has not featured in Brighton’s last two matches, in which they’ve failed to score.

what the managers SAY

Arteta: “It’s a club that I admire a lot and what they’ve done over the last 10 years is incredible. They’ve had different managers, and now Fabian [Hurzeler] has come in with very different ideas as well, a lot of energy, a really, really committed team and look very, very together. 

“They have a lot of quality, they can play in different ways, and they have versatile players. So it’s going to be a tough match.”

Hurzeler: “The most important thing is to get the small margins right against Arsenal, defend set pieces well, to be good in and out of possession. We have to stay alive for 90 minutes. But we can’t go there with the mindset of thinking only about defending. 

“We have to play with courage. We will try to bring our style of play on the pitch. We know that we can beat every team in the league, although it will be a big challenge, but we go there to win.”

Team news

Mikel Arteta is hopeful Kai Havertz will return “in a matter of days, if not weeks” after taking part in training once again following a knee injury he suffered against Manchester United in August. The boss also said he was hoping Gabriel would return soon after picking up an injury during the November international break with Brazil.

Elsewhere, Gabriel Martinelli picked up a knock against Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup, with Piero Hincapie missing the game entirely after playing 90 minutes against Everton on December 20. Ben White remains out with a hamstring injury.

Danny Welbeck is expected to return from injury after missing Brighton’s match against Sunderland last time out. Jan Paul van Hecke is also expected to recover having trained in the build-up to the match.

Lewis Dunk and Diego Gomez are also back in contention after missing the stalemate with the Black Cats with a one-game suspension. Carlos Baleba will miss the contest as he is representing Cameroon at the Africa Cup of Nations.

talking tactics

Adrian Clarke, writing in the official matchday programme: Hurzeler is a big fan of a 4-2-3-1 formation, using it in every Premier League match so far this season. Both full-backs will invert into central areas on occasion to create an extra man inside the engine room. When that happens, we must look out for the opposite full-back bombing forward to support attacks. 

When they choose to do so, Brighton can build attacks patiently, with only four sides producing a greater number of passing sequences that exceed 10 passes this term. Where possible, the Seagulls will take risks as well, drawing opponents onto them before playing through the press. They are very comfortable in possession.

Since becoming head coach, Hurzeler has developed a more rounded tactical approach, that allows them to be stylistically flexible depending on who they are facing. While they like to control games, Brighton have actually had better results when enjoying the minority share of possession, and five of their first six Premier League wins in 2025/26 saw them have less than 50% possession. Playing that way, they took the scalps of Manchester City, Newcastle United and Chelsea. 

Hurzeler loves his team to press, and because they do it in an aggressive but coordinated manner, often springing a midfielder from deep to harass the man on the ball, Brighton have had more shots from high turnovers than anyone else. That said, they backed off in a recent clash away to Liverpool, retreating into a mid-pitch block that lacked their usual energy and verve.

Facts and stats

All three of our Premier League home wins against Brighton have been by a 2-0 scoreline (October 2017, May 2021, December 2023).

We have won each of our last five Premier League home games. Only once under Mikel Arteta have we had a longer run at the Emirates, winning 10 in a row between April and December 2022.

Brighton are winless in their last four Premier League games against us (D2 L2).

The Seagulls have never won a Premier League match in December under Fabian Hurzeler in 10 attempts (D6 L4). It’s the most games ever managed by a manager in December without winning.

Among players to play 500+ minutes in the Premier League this season, only Manchester City duo Jeremy Doku (3.4) and Rayan Cherki (3.2) have created more open play chances per 90 minutes than our captain Martin Odegaard (2.5), with the Norwegian creating four last time out against Everton.

David Raya could make his 150th Premier League appearance – since his debut in August 2021, he has kept more clean sheets than any other goalkeeper in the competition (58).

match officials

John Brooks will take charge of our contest against Brighton this weekend. Brooks has refereed nine games this season, showing 35 yellows plus three reds, including two in his last outing with the whistle, sending off Xavi Simons and Cristian Romero in Tottenham Hotspur’s 2-1 defeat at home to Liverpool.

Brooks also officiated our 2-0 victory over West Ham United in October. He will be assisted by Simon Bennett and Craig Taylor. Paul Tierney is on VAR with Nick Hopton as his assistant. Tierney was the VAR for our last Premier League match against the Seagulls, a 1-1 draw at the Amex Stadium in January.

Referee: John Brooks
Assistants: Simon Bennett and Craig Taylor
Fourth official: Ruebyn Ricardo
VAR: Paul Tierney
Assistant VAR: Nick Hopton

Recent visits

We proved too strong for Brighton in our matchup earlier this season, coming in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup in October. Kepa Arrizabalaga was kept busy in the first half before Ethan Nwaneri swept home with a fine first-time finish before Bukayo Saka rounded off the victory late on.

Having drawn 1-1 to the Seagulls in August 2024 when Havertz was on target, our last victory at home to the Seagulls prior to that came in December 2023, thanks to goals from Gabriel Jesus and Havertz again. The campaign before saw the Seagulls claim two wins, knocking us out of the League Cup by a 3-1 scoreline, and then a 3-0 win to all-but end our championship challenge.

Live coverage

Tune into Live From N5 an hour before kick-off for all the best build-up to our clash against the Seagulls.

We’ve got an action-packed preview show, with an interview with penalty shootout hero Kepa Arrizabalaga, as well as actor Gregg Sulkin dropping into the show.

All this, plus tactical build-up, games and much more before we get underway at 3pm!

You can also find out which broadcasters are showing the action live, wherever you are in the world.