There was a collective deep sigh of relief around the Emirates Stadium at the end of 13 minutes of added time, Arsenal’s four-game winless run ended with a win against Brighton.
It wasn’t the most convincing of performances from the Gunners, a lack of any real clinical edge in the final third still a major concern, but attention will not be on Brighton or Arsenal’s footballing woes, but the worrying head injury of the Brighton full-back Maelys Mpomé, who exited on a stretcher and with an oxygen mask after 10 minutes of treatment on the pitch.
A ball to the face sent Mpomé to the floor shortly after the hour mark and the football felt a little trivial after. The show goes on though, and the win alleviates some growing pressure on the Arsenal manager Renée Slegers.
It has seemed a little cruel to suggest the heat has been turned up a little on the manager that delivered Arsenal’s second European title in her first season in charge having only had her temporary role made permanent in January. There was a lot of leeway earned with that historic triumph and blistering campaign that unfolded once Slegers replaced Jonas Eidevall in October 2024.
However, with four games without a win – two draws and a defeat in the WSL and a loss by Lyon in their Champions League opener – there was little doubt coming into the game against Brighton that Slegers is facing the biggest test of her Arsenal tenure, to date. That may feel like an exaggeration, given the Champions League final was a pretty major hurdle, as were many games in the run-up to that night in Lisbon, but expectations were low then, every win was a thrilling step on a journey no one was quite expecting.
