We continued our excellent form through the festive period by picking up a third win in a week by beating Brighton & Hove Albion 2-1 on Saturday, to remain top of the Premier League table.

A fine strike from Martin Odegaard was followed by a Georginio Rutter own goal, and while our lead was made slender thanks to Diego Gomez's effort, that proved to be a consolation as we picked up another three points.

But what else contributed to our victory? Adrian Clarke has pored through the footage and dug into the stats to point out five key tactical reasons for our success:

RICE'S NEW ROLE

It was unusual to see Declan Rice deployed as a right-back against Brighton, but our record signing made the transition look easy. One crunching first-half tackle on Maxim de Cuyper set the tone for an authoritative display that showcased what a versatile player he is.

Interestingly, we did not see Rice invert into central midfield too often. Instead, the England international performed his new role in a more orthodox manner, dominating the wide channel and focusing hard on providing Bukayo Saka with quality service and support.

Rice's Heat Map

Rice may not have claimed an official assist, but he did play a key part in both goals. For the opener, he nodded the ball down to Saka, before making what turned out to be a very important underlap on the winger’s inside. As you can see below, his forceful run attracted the attention of two opposition players, dragging them deep into their own box:

Without this surge, Martin Odegaard would not have enjoyed as much space to line up his pinpoint shot into the bottom corner.

It was also Rice’s excellent curled delivery from a left-wing corner that forced Georginio Rutter to head the ball into his own net early in the second period. Without those two key moments – one less obvious than the other – we may not have collected the three points our dominance deserved.

SEAGULLS' SAKA STRUGGLES

Right from the first whistle, it was apparent we wanted to feed Saka as frequently as possible. Our brilliant winger had too much speed and skill for De Cuyper to handle - who was subbed at the break - so it made sense to pass to him at every available opportunity.

Saka went past his man at will, teasing blue and white shirts by dragging the ball past them on the outside and inside. This example from early on in the contest shows how we isolated him 1v1, and the 24-year-old exploded past the defender before shooting from the angle:

Fabian Hurzeler’s men only enjoyed two more touches inside the box (18) than Saka did on his own (16), who created four chances, made three successful dribbles and racked up seven shots on goal. The wide man will be frustrated that he didn't get on the scoresheet, especially with a 1v1 late on that would have sealed the points – but his threat was constant.

Saka's shots and key passes

STRONG ATTACKING NUMBERS

In terms of chance creation, it was an outstanding afternoon’s work. Running amok at times, raiding successfully down both wings and causing Brighton problems with direct forward passes (10.2% of our passes were long), on another day, we would have scored much more than the two that hit the back of the net:

For the first time in 2025/26 we surpassed three expected goals in a top-flight contest, while we also amassed the most shots, as well as shots and touches inside the opposition box of any Premier League game this term.

If we had been more lethal when those chances came our way, Brighton – who had only lost five of 17 games - would have been beaten comfortably and comprehensively.

RAYA TO THE RESCUE

David Raya had been a spectator during a first half which saw the Seagulls fail to register a single shot on goal, but two half-time changes from Hurzeler sparked the visitors into life, with right winger Yankuba Minteh especially dangerous.

With the score delicately poised at 2-1, the Gambian international thought he had equalised in the 76th minute when a left-footed curler was whipped ferociously towards the top corner, but Raya, who had been forced into action just once prior to this moment, reacted incredibly quickly to pull off one of the most spectacular saves you will see all season. 

With his body at full stretch, our super Spaniard leapt athletically to his right before tipping the ball over the crossbar with a save that drew gasps from those in attendance. It was a quite brilliant stop which preserved our lead, and position at the top of the table.

THE SKIPPER SHONE

This was Martin Odegaard’s most influential performance of the season so far. While the Norwegian leaned towards the right as usual, he was used as a more central No.10 in this encounter, playing freely between the lines. This heat map shows how mobile he was:

By tucking infield, Odegaard created extra space for Saka to isolate Brighton’s wing-back down the right. Not crowding that area with his presence, our captain picked the ball up in central positions a great deal before angling early passes aimed in the winger’s direction.

His five key passes (a team high) were all aimed towards the right side, with many of those stemming from quickly constructed attacks:

Odegaard's chances created

Always probing, showing quick feet in tight areas, and no shortage of improvised flair, Odegaard was our star performer and showed he was back to his best after his injury issues. When you also consider that he also scored his first Gunners goal of the season, this must go down as a pleasingly uplifting display from our talented skipper.