"Really exciting game and a tough one to call" - Alan Shearer makes prediction for Arsenal vs Brighton
Alan Shearer has backed Arsenal to win their Premier League fixture against Brighton & Hove Albion this weekend (Saturday, August 31). The pundit believes the Gunners will overwhelm the Seagulls with their attacking prowess at the Emirates.
Mikel Arteta's side have had a great start to the 2024-25 campaign, winning 2-0 in their first two fixtures against Wolverhampton Wanderers (A) and Aston Villa (H). The north Londoners seem in form as they look to end their 20-year drought for a league title.
Meanwhile, Brighton have been excellent so far too under new manager Fabian Hurzeler. The Seagulls secured a dominant 3-0 win over Everton away in their opening fixture before defeating Manchester United 2-1 the following weekend at home.
While acknowledging this weekend's showdown is hard to predict given their results, Shearer sees the Gunners triumphing over Hurzeler's side. He said (via Metro):
"This is a really exciting game and a tough one to call. Brighton have been very impressive in beating Man United and going to a tough place in Goodison Park and scoring three goals, which could’ve been more that day. Their wingers ripped Everton to shreds."
"They’ll go to Arsenal full of confidence after the result last weekend too. It’s been a great start from Fabian Hürzeler, managing to impose himself on that squad, but I think Arsenal, who got that result despite not playing too well at Aston Villa and have two wins from two themselves, so they will make it tough for Brighton. I think Arsenal will have too much for Brighton in the end."
"Leandro Trossard came on last week, scored with his first touch and when a manager brings you off the bench, it’s either to protect the game or to win it, and boy did Trossard make an impact. He looked so cool, and it was a clever finish. When Arsenal go in-front they are hard to beat."
Arsenal are third in the league standings, level on points with league-leaders Manchester City and second-placed Brighton.
"It’s very unfortunate" - Mikel Arteta confirms injury for Arsenal summer signing Mikel Merino
Arsenal have been dealt a huge blow as summer signing Mikel Merino has picked up an injury during training. Manager Mikel Arteta has confirmed that the Spaniard will not feature against Brighton this weekend.
The Gunners announced Merino's arrival from Real Sociedad earlier this week, having secured his services for a reported £32 million. The Spain international impressed with his performances at the Euro 2024, scoring in the quarter-final against Germany.
However, Merino will not be seen in action for the next few weeks, according to Arteta. He revealed that the midfielder suffered a fracture to his shoulder during training. Ahead of the Brighton clash, Mikel Arteta said (per the club's official website):
"It’s very unfortunate. Yesterday he had a collision and got a shoulder injury. He’s going to be out for a few weeks. It’s really bad luck and we were all very excited.
"He was looking very good, he landed on the floor, Gabi went on top of him and it looks like he’s got a small fracture probably. He was in so much pain, so we have to wait and see with the staff to do some more tests to have more conclusive answers."
The Gunners have also signed Riccardo Calafiori this summer while making David Raya's loan move permanent from Brentford.