Our Under-18s suffered their first defeat of the year, falling 3-2 to Brighton & Hove Albion at Sobha Realty Training Centre.
What Happened
We fell behind early after losing possession cheaply, allowing Zach Brennan to slip in Jacob Parsons. His initial shot was well saved by Jack Porter, but the Brighton forward was quickest to the rebound, tapping in to give the visitors the lead.
Porter then produced a superb double save to keep us in the game, first denying Parsons from a tight angle with his feet before quickly reacting to push away Younes Ibrahim’s goal-bound effort.
However, Brighton doubled their lead in first-half stoppage time when Zebedee Lawson found the top corner with a brilliant strike. But we responded immediately, as substitute Brando Bailey-Joseph cut inside from the left and curled a lovely effort into the back of the net to bring us back into the contest.
After the break, Brighton restored their two-goal advantage when Lawson controlled the ball well in the box before setting up Ibrahim, who slotted past Porter from close range.
We continued to push forward and pulled one back with ten minutes to go, as Ife Ibrahim played a perfectly weighted through ball to substitute Alex Marciniak, who finished calmly into the bottom corner.
We thought we had snatched a late equaliser when Ceadach O’Neill found the net, but the goal was ruled out for offside. Brighton held on to secure all three points.
What It Means
This defeat keeps us on 19 points after 13 games played.
What’s Next?
Our Under-18s now turn their focus to the FA Youth Cup quarter-final, where we will host Manchester United at Emirates Stadium on Friday, February 28.
Kick-off: 7pm (UK time)
Tickets are still available – come and support our young Gunners in this huge game!
Line-Ups
Arsenal XI: Porter, Murisa, Onyekachukwu, Chapman, Ismail (Ogunnaike, 46), Ibrahim, Copley, Casey (Marciniak, 60) O'Neill, Harriman-Annous (Oyetunde, 53), Zecevic John (Bailey-Joseph, 23)
Subs (not used): Ranson
Brighton XI: Rutter, Alakiu, Ferdinand, Outen, Vickers (Anah, 61), Brennan (Ademola, 86) Lawson, Middleton, Ibrahim, Kasvosve (Newnham-Reeve, 45+4), Parsons
Subs (not used): Taylor, Cullinane
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