Want to understand the biggest story of the day before anyone else? Sign up here for our awesome new daily newsletter
Chance after chance, Arsenal’s varied attack stormed past Brighton & Hove Albion’s defence.
“The understanding between the attackers today was superb,” Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said after an impressive 3-0 win alongside Roberto De Zerbi. “They had a real goal and connection, and they knew very clearly where to attack.”
Purpose, connection and clarity are three words that can easily be linked to Arsenal’s creation of chances from set pieces, their knack for playing the ball in behind the Brighton defence, attacking in transition or through wide passing combinations in the final third.
GO FURTHER
The Briefing: Brighton 0 Arsenal 3 – Clinical Saka, evil Havertz and title dreams in poor health
On the latter, Arsenal’s most obvious combinations are on the right side thanks to the link between Ben White, Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard. However, it wasn’t the only passing combination that stunned Brighton’s defense as Arteta’s side overloaded the wide areas in an attempt to cut through their opponents.
Firstly, Declan Rice and Odegaard overcharged together on different occasions in the first half, whether on the right…
…or the left.
In this example, they both combine on the left side, but only the final pass fails them.
Initially, Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Rice occupy their usual positions and are in a three-on-three scenario against Tariq Lamptey, Simon Adingra and Carlos Baleba, with Odegaard near the D and followed by Pascal Gross.
While Jesus passes the ball to Zinchenko…
… Odegaard runs towards the left side and Gross signals to Brighton’s right central defender, Jan Paul van Hecke, to collect the Norwegian.
Zinchenko spots Odegaard’s movement and sends the ball into his captain’s path…
…which catches Baleba’s attention and allows Rice to run after him. Odegaard finds the England midfielder’s run with a one-touch pass…
…but Rice’s low cross is cleared by Gross.
Another variation of Arsenal’s wide overloads against Brighton came from Jorginho – whether on the right side to help Saka, White and Odegaard…
…or the left side to help Zinchenko, Rice and Jesus.
In this example, Jakub Moder drops down to support Adingra, while Brighton right-back Lamptey leaves the field to seek treatment. After moving the ball to the left side, Jorginho wanders there to overload this area and combines with Zinchenko and Jesus…
… leaving Ivory Coast international Adingra to chase the shadows between three players.
Meanwhile, Rice’s positioning pins Baleba…
…and allows Jesus to find Jorginho in this pocket of space.
On the other side, Odegaard is hiding near the D, with Gross monitoring him…
…but as Jorginho receives the ball and combines with Rice, the Norwegian makes a run towards the left side…
…and tries to attack the overloaded area, but Jorginho cannot find his way.
In the second half, it was more of the same but with another player doing the overload.
Kai Havertz has been linked with a move to the right wing, with Gross, Pervis Estupinan and Julio Enciso focusing on Saka, Odegaard and White.
In an attempt to win the ball back, Gross tries to put pressure on William Saliba while blocking the passing lane to Saka and, behind him, Enciso and Estupinan continue to hunt down Odegaard and White.
Havertz’s overload pays off when he switches positions with White, whose move blocks Brighton’s left-back and frees the German striker. Odegaard then signals Saliba to pass the ball to the free man…
…and the central defender finds Havertz in space…
… who crosses the ball towards the far post, but Jesus’ header misses the target.
In another example, Arsenal combine on the right side, with Jorginho and Havertz heading into that area to support. As the ball is returned to Jorginho, Havertz moves away from Lewis Dunk to overload the right side…
…and the Brighton central defender is reluctant to follow due to the threat of Saka on the pitch. Jorginho’s quick decision-making leaves Dunk no time to think, and the Italian midfielder quickly finds Havertz with a pass through Brighton’s left side…
…before the attacker returned the ball to Odegaard on the edge of the penalty area…
…and the playmaker’s shot is stopped by Bart Verbruggen.
Approaching Arsenal’s second goal, Jorginho is closer to the right side for reasons of rest and defense and to help with passing combinations if necessary.
This comes in handy when he quickly wins the ball back to stop Brighton’s counter-attack and maintain Arsenal’s attacking threat. Jorginho, who is pressed by Moder, then passes the ball to White…
…and continues his forward movement as the right-back sends the ball to Odegaard. Due to their position out of possession, Gross and Enciso focus on Odegaard and White, which is why Jorginho’s run surprises the Paraguayan striker…
…and allows Jorginho to attack space freely. Odegaard then finds his course…
…before Jorginho set up Havertz, who scored to double Arsenal’s lead.
The speed of Arsenal’s passing combinations, quick decision-making and well-timed rotations are hallmarks of this team’s attack in the wide areas, but when you add in overloads it gives them another advantage.
GO FURTHER
The passes that define the way Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City play