Arsenal will aim to go into the final week of the year at the top of the table when they host Brighton & Hove Albion at the Emirates on Saturday.
Gameweek 18 of the 2025/26 Premier League season will continue this weekend after only one Boxing Day clash. The action on Saturday will start with the game between Nottingham Forest and Manchester City before continuing with five simultaneous matches, including Arsenal vs Brighton & Hove Albion.
Arsenal did not stutter in terms of results despite falling to a narrow defeat to Aston Villa a few weeks ago, and they have embarked on a four-match winning run since then. However, the North London club’s performances have not been convincing in domestic outings, and they needed penalty shootouts to get past Crystal Palace in the EFL Cup quarter-final earlier this week.
With Manchester City only two points behind Arsenal and the title race getting more intense with each passing week, Mikel Arteta knows his charges cannot slip up in the coming weeks unless they want the ghosts of recent seasons to emerge again.
On the other hand, Brighton & Hove Albion have been dreadful in the last few weeks, as a four-game winless streak has left them ninth in the Premier League standings. Fabian Hurzeler’s men were on a promising run before this, and the German tactician will be eager to see his team return to winning ways soon. Additionally, with teams above them also struggling, the Seagulls have the opportunity to leapfrog a few sides with some victories.
Brighton & Hove Albion came from a goal down to hold Arsenal to a 1-1 draw last season, with Joao Pedro scoring the equaliser. The Hard Tackle looks closer at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Arsenal
Mikel Arteta has a new injury concern that is hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture. The Arsenal manager may be bereft of the services of as many as seven first-team players vs Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday.
Arteta is sweating over Gabriel Martinelli’s fitness after the Brazilian international picked up a knock in the EFL Cup quarter-final against Crystal Palace earlier this week. Martinelli and Piero Hincapie (muscular) face late fitness tests to determine their availability. However, Ben White (thigh), Gabriel Magalhaes (groin), Cristhian Mosquera (ankle), Kai Havertz (knee), and Max Dowman (ankle) remain in the treatment room.
David Raya is an automatic pick between the sticks, and he will make his 150th Premier League appearance this weekend. Arsenal will line up in a 4-3-3 formation in front of him vs Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday, with Jurrien Timber, William Saliba, Riccardo Calafiori, and Myles Lewis-Skelly forming the backline. Hincapie will start instead of Lewis-Skelly if he is fit and available.
As for the midfield unit, there is no looking past Martin Zubimendi, Declan Rice, and Martin Odegaard. Finally, Viktor Gyokeres will lead the line for Arsenal against Brighton & Hove Albion, with Leandro Trossard and Bukayo Saka being the two wide attackers.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Raya; Timber, Saliba, Calafiori, Lewis-Skelly; Zubimendi, Rice, Odegaard; Saka, Gyokeres, Trossard
Brighton & Hove Albion
Unlike his counterpart in the Arsenal dugout, Fabian Hurzeler has received positive updates on the team news front ahead of the trip to the Emirates. The Brighton & Hove Albion manager will be without only four first-team players vs Arsenal on Saturday.
Lewis Dunk and Diego Gomez have served their suspensions, while Jan Paul van Hecke (illness), Mats Wieffer (head), and Danny Welbeck (lower back) should be fit and available to take on Arsenal this weekend. However, Adam Webster, Solomon March, and Stefanos Tzimas remain in the treatment room due to their knee injuries, while Carlos Baleba remains unavailable due to his involvement in the Africa Cup of Nations.
Bart Verbruggen is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Brighton & Hove Albion lining up in a 4-3-3 formation in front of him vs Arsenal on Saturday. The backline will feature Mats Wieffer, Jan Paul van Hecke, Lewis Dunk, and Ferdi Kadioglu.
As for the midfield unit, there is no looking past Yasin Ayari, Diego Gomez, and Brajan Gruda. Finally, Georginio Rutter will spearhead the Brighton & Hove Albion attack against Arsenal, with Yankuba Minteh and Kaoru Mitoma being the two wide attackers.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Verbruggen; Wieffer, van Hecke, Dunk, Kadioglu; Gomez, Ayari, Gruda; Minteh, Rutter, Mitoma
Key Stats
- Arsenal have won only three of their eight Premier League home games vs Brighton & Hove Albion (38%, D2 L3), only having a lower win rate against Wimbledon (25%) and Liverpool (36%) among sides they have faced five or more times. Meanwhile, the Seagulls are winless in their last four Premier League games against Arsenal (D2 L2), although they came from behind to hold the Gunners to 1-1 draws in both meetings in the 2024/25 season.
- Arsenal have won their last five Premier League home games. Only once under Mikel Arteta have they had a longer run at the Emirates, winning ten successive top-flight matches at the Emirates between April and December 2022.
- Brighton & Hove Albion have failed to score in their last two Premier League matches, and they were one of only two sides to fail to score in Gameweek 16 and Gameweek 17, along with Everton. The Seagulls have not gone three without a strike since January 2024.
- Arsenal sit top of the Premier League for Christmas for the fifth time, alongside 2002/03, 2007/08, 2022/23, and 2023/24. They have never won the competition from that position. Two of those have been under Mikel Arteta, and no manager has ever been atop the Premier League at Christmas three times and then not won the competition.
- Brighton & Hove Albion have never won a Premier League match in December under manager Fabian Hurzeler in ten attempts (D6 L4). It is the most games ever managed by a manager in December without winning.
Player to Watch
Martin Odegaard
While Bukayo Saka is one of our five suggestions for FPL captaincy in Gameweek 18, we have picked Martin Odegaard as the Player to Watch for Saturday’s Premier League clash between Arsenal and Brighton & Hove Albion at the Emirates.
Among players to play 500 or more minutes in the Premier League this season, only Manchester City’s Jeremy Doku (3.4) and Rayan Cherki (3.2) have created more open play chances per 90 minutes than Odegaard (2.5). The Norwegian playmaker was on top of his game last weekend, creating four chances against Everton. The Arsenal skipper will hope this form continues, as his performances hold the key for the North London outfit.
Prediction
Arsenal 2-1 Brighton & Hove Albion
With Arsenal recently struggling to put opponents to the sword, Brighton & Hove Albion will feel they have a solid opportunity to end their mini-drought while also having the chance to return to winning ways. Additionally, the Gunners have not been as solid at the back as their head coach desires.
However, Martin Odegaard has been promising in recent weeks, and he will effortlessly pull the strings from the middle of the park. That will bring the best out of Bukayo Saka and lead to a hard-fought victory. The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-1 win for Mikel Arteta and his charges.