Arsenal Vs Brighton: 5 key players to watch – Resurrection

Arsenal travel to Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday afternoon looking for resurrection following their dismantling by Manchester City. Here are five key players to watch.

After being dismantled for the umpteenth time by Manchester City on Wednesday evening, Arsenal travel to Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday afternoon in search of resurrection as they attempt to keep their slender Champions League hopes alive. Mikel Arteta will be hoping for an immediate bounceback from his player, who looked worryingly dejected come full-time. If he is to see his team recover, which players will be central to the Gunners’ recover?

Here are five key players to watch when Arsenal face Brighton on Saturday.

5. Bukayo Saka

One of Arsenal’s greatest issues against City was their lack of offensive ingenuity and creativity. Especially in the opening 30 minutes, they were able to engineer openings against an exposed City defence, usually with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang searing in behind, desperately waiting for a pass to be released his way. It rarely was.

Against Brighton, however, Arsenal will have more possession. They should be able to play with a higher defensive line and look to dominate proceedings as a result. Their attacking players should have more opportunities to prod and probe the Brighton defence. They will need to show a greater clinical streak in the final third than they did in midweek.

One such player who may benefit from this is Bukayo Saka. The 18-year-old switched to the right flank against City. It remains to be seen whether he will hold onto his starting role, but he is dangerous on the ball, delivers a lovely cross into the box, and, given Arsenal’s starting line-up against City, is one of the more creative players in the team. If a similar system is used at the weekend, he will need to deliver.