Kai Havertz secured a hard-fought 1-0 victory for Arsenal against Brentford, propelling them to the top of the Premier League.
The German showcased his talent with a late goal despite his struggles since joining Arsenal from Chelsea, where he was a hero in the Champions League final.
This was only his second goal in his last 10 appearances. The win puts Arsenal one point ahead of Manchester City, who drew 1-1 with Liverpool.
Arsenal’s third consecutive victory in all competitions demonstrates their ability to bounce back from their contentious VAR-assisted loss to Newcastle earlier in November.
Arteta’s team had previously emerged victorious at the Gtech Community Stadium in the League Cup back in September. They once again achieved success in their recent visit to west London, although it took them until the last moments of the game.
Aaron Ramsdale made his first league start since September 3 because of the ineligibility David Raya, who is on loan from Brentford, his parent club.
Ramsdale’s father recently criticized Arteta‘s handling of the Arsenal goalkeeping situation. Surprisingly, despite having the second-highest number of clean sheets in the Premier League last season, the English international lost his place to Raya.
However, Arteta’s trust in Raya was justified when Ramsdale, clearly lacking confidence after his time on the bench, made a terrible mistake early in the first half that almost gifted Brentford the lead.
Under pressure from Yoane Wissa, Ramsdale attempted to play the ball out from the six-yard box after receiving a back pass from Gabriel, but he panicked and missed his kick.
Fortunately for Ramsdale, Bryan Mbeumo’s subsequent shot was cleared off the line by Declan Rice, and Wissa failed to convert the rebound.
Throughout the match, Ramsdale was taunted by Brentford fans. He breathed a sigh of relief when Christian Norgaard fired just over from the edge of the area.
Arsenal started slowly, but they began to show signs of life when Trossard headed Zinchenko’s cross over the goal and Gabriel nodded into the side-netting.
Gabriel Jesus, Arsenal’s forward, made his first league appearance in a month after recovering from a muscle injury.
He was involved in a moment when Arsenal believed they had taken the lead in the 42nd minute. Jesus met Saka’s cross with a header that was saved by Mark Flekken, and Trossard scored from close range.
However, a VAR check determined that Trossard was narrowly offside, causing frustration for Arteta due to the review system.
Odegaard had a close chance from Saka’s cross shortly after the break, but Arsenal lacked rhythm for most of the second half.
Brentford almost capitalized on Arsenal’s sluggishness as Maupay’s header was cleared off the line by Zinchenko, and the French forward missed the rebound.
That proved to be a crucial moment as Havertz, who came off the bench, scored the winning goal in the 89th minute.
Saka’s cross found Havertz at the far post, and the German guided his header past Flekken, prompting Arteta to celebrate on the sidelines.
