The North London team entered the match riding a 10-game unbeaten streak in the Premier League.

Why was Igor Thiago left on the bench?

Although they had recently dominated the Bees, remaining unbeaten in their last seven Premier League encounters, Mikel Arteta and his squad would recall how challenging their home game was last season when Yoane Wissa's late goal secured a draw after Thomas Partey's opening goal.

Brentford's away performance in 2025/26 had been disappointing, with five defeats and only one victory in six matches.

This made the decision to start Igor Thiago on the bench seem quite unusual from Keith Andrews, considering the player’s 11 league goals have only been surpassed by Erling Haaland's 15 so far this season.

The forward was one of five changes made by the visitors, marking their highest number of changes in consecutive matches this season, and matching their joint record in the Premier League (5 against Brighton on Boxing Day 2021).

Merino... once again

Before Brentford could establish themselves in the match, the Gunners took the lead.

Martin Odegaard had a shot blocked prior to a beautiful cross from Ben White which Mikel Merino powerfully headed in his 13th goal across all competitions in 2025 and ninth in the Premier League this calendar year – no Arsenal player has scored more in either category.

No English top-flight player has scored more headers than Merino’s eight since last season began, and this was his second goal against Brentford in three matches, with White providing his third assist against the Bees.

Conceding an 11th goal before halftime meant only the bottom two teams, Burnley (12) and Wolverhampton Wanderers (13), had allowed more goals than Brentford.

Arsenal in command

Arsenal’s clear superiority was evident, as the home side controlled 73% of possession during the first 15 minutes. Although the play wasn’t always spectacular, the Gunners faced little threat.

The visitors did not have a shot until the 20th minute, but then quickly followed up with two more attempts.

Kevin Schade's effort was on target, but it remained Brentford’s only shot on goal throughout the match; Arsenal responded as expected by taking four shots themselves.

Odegaard was orchestrating the midfield brilliantly, creating three chances in the first half and emerging as the most active player on the field.

Lack of effort from Brentford players

Brentford’s contribution was minimal, with Dango Ouattara completing only five passes before halftime, while only Ethan Pinnock and Michael Kayode showed respectable passing ranges.

Pinnock’s 96.8% pass accuracy was the best among Brentford players, closely followed by Kayode at 95.7%.

Kayode not only engaged in the most one-on-one duels (15) but also won the highest number (nine), which was disappointing for Bees supporters who hoped for such effort from the entire team. Kristoffer Ajermanaged to win only one out of seven duels contested.

Thiago was one of three substitutes brought on after the 60th minute, but this did not significantly alter the game’s flow.

Second goal was unavoidable

Strangely, despite Arsenal appearing comfortable,Riccardo Calafioriregistered the first shot on target for Arsenal since Noni Maduekein the 17th minute.

Still, the home side kept pressing forward, and Brentford owed much to goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher, who made five saves to keep Arsenal from scoring more.

Unfortunately for the keeper, his teammates never appeared likely to earn a point, and although it took until injury time for Bukayo Saka to secure the victory, Arsenal’s second goal was always on the horizon.

Kelleher managed to get both hands to the English international’s shot, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the ball from slowly crossing the line.

Match decided.

Back to the drawing board for the Bees

When Andrews and his coaching staff review the match to identify what went wrong, they will likely focus on the lack of offensive urgency.

Only one shot on target and six total attempts, along with just 13 touches inside the opponent’s penalty area, will not win matches.

Giving up two-thirds of possession to one of the Premier League’s best passing teams is expected, so Brentford needed to excel in other aspects.

Sadly, double Arsenal’s four corners produced no results, and failing to regain possession even once in the final third tells its own story.

A disappointing evening for the Bees, while Arteta and his squad can now approach their upcoming fixture against Aston Villa with renewed confidence.