sport news Arsenal's title bid is gathering pace, but Martin Odegaard says Keep Calm and ... trends now
Seconds after Kaoru Mitoma appeared to have made it 4-3 to set up a grandstand finish and before VAR’s intervention, Mikel Arteta stood on the sidelines attempting to cut through the chaos and cranked-up atmosphere to get an urgent message to his players.
He pointed quickly and repeatedly to his head before waving his arms in the air, palms downwards, in an exaggerated call for calm amid the tension and drama of the moment, with Arsenal in danger of seeing the second three-goal lead they had held wiped out.
Defender Gabriel Magalhaes was the target of a similar gesture from Arteta much earlier in the game after Bukayo Saka had given the Gunners the lead 65 seconds in.
Mikel Arteta was anxiously trying to communicate with his players during their win at Brighton
So too was another scorer Eddie Nketiah, not long after Brighton had pulled their first goal back to make it 3-1. This is now the remainder of Arsenal’s season in a nutshell.
Supporters are trying their best to remain calm as the prospect of a first Premier League title since 2004 grows. Arteta’s players simply have to.
They are only 16 games into this campaign due to the mid-season World Cup break but what a position Arsenal have got themselves into going into the new year.
One few would have dared to dream of before the first ball of the campaign was kicked.
One that will still be tough to take if it is lost, despite the numerous hurdles ahead and pre-season hopes of simply securing a top-four place for the first time since 2016.
A maturity will be required to retain it — which Arsenal have displayed many a time up to this point this season.
At Brighton, it was in how they ensured they took full advantage of their nearest rivals slipping up to win — at a ground where they have faced difficulties in the past — to go seven points clear. There is now a streetwise side to this Arsenal team too, a reflection of their manager who kicks every ball, challenges almost every decision and makes his presence felt on the sidelines.
Arteta found further encouragement about his side’s progression in their dressing-room reaction, when the post-match focus was on what
