When Brentford held Arsenal to a 1-1 draw at the Emirates on Saturday, Arsenal squandered a chance to significantly widen their advantage at the top of the Premier League standings.
Leandro Trossard, a recent acquisition, had an immediate impact off the bench to volley in Bukayo Saka’s cross and give his team the lead.
The advantage, however, was short-lived as Brentford kept up the pressure on the counterattacks, and only a few minutes later, striker Ivan Toney headed in an equaliser.
Mikel Arteta’s team had an eight-point advantage in the standings, but they never seemed to be in control against a determined Brentford team who should have been ahead by halftime.
“Small margins are the key to winning. You seldom win by wide margins. But you don’t lose it if you can’t win it “Added Arteta. “We’ll prepare for City. It will be again another large and stunning one.”
After the game, goal scorer Trossard spoke to the BBC and said: “Of course, scoring is wonderful because it gives me motivation, but it’s unfortunate because they were able to tie the score. It’s difficult to accept. We accomplished everything correctly. It’s difficult to score against Brentford ” As we previously said, the set pieces are incredibly outstanding, and tonight was no exception. We must take note of it. On Wednesday, there will be another game to turn things around “You can’t always have your way in a game. We have to put in a lot of effort every day. Even when the results don’t go your way, we need to maintain the positive energy inside the squad.”
The team that fell 1-0 against Everton last weekend was started by the home manager Arteta, but they struggled for the second straight week.
A well-drilled Brentford team that was at ease at the back and threatening whenever they attacked allowed Arsenal to ride their luck in the first half. Rico Henry sliced wildly wide from a low cross only minutes into the game.
However, Toney’s effort against the woodwork with the goal gaping was unsuccessful.
During one pause in the action, Arteta gathered his team around him and shouted instructions. The home crowd was complaining when Ben Mee had another opportunity for Brentford.
When Gabriel Martinelli volleyed over just before halftime, the hosts had finally put together a smooth play after Saka pushed a shot from a tight angle at the goalkeeper for the visitors, David Raya.
After the interval, Toney missed the target with a shot, and Brentford seemed to be regretting their missed opportunities in the first half until Saka slipped a low ball across the goal area for Trossard to score.
The visitors won a VAR review for offside, and Toney’s header gave Brentford their just desserts.
Brentford is currently in eighth position and has gone 11 games without a loss in the Premier League. With six points more than second-place Manchester City, who will play Aston Villa tomorrow, Arsenal is still in first place.
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