Arsenal Got Beaten Badly... But I'm Okay With It
Simon Miller's Column
Arsenal got badly beat… but I’m all good with it
So, straight out of the gates, this column will NOT just be about Arsenal every week. That’s boring and besides, if I leave it too long I won’t get to laugh about Tottenham’s predicament*.
We’ll ignore that today, though, because sure. Arsenal. Beaten. Badly. The ABB. The worst result for Mikel Arteta since Brighton did this to us a few years ago. That’s why football will always secretly be like an annoying friend. It yearns for a crazy stat or headline that nobody quite saw coming, and that's why we love it all the same.
We go again after the international break. pic.twitter.com/tULXRovWmZ
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) September 19, 2026
As ever, the wider community went into meltdown mostly as reactionary opinions continue to fuel 2026, where I genuinely heard the following:
“Mikel Arteta has to go.”
“The depth is lacking.”
“The bubble has burst.”
This is mad. And wrong.
No Worries Needed
I’ve told my Arsenal friends this year all we need to do with any nonsense is reply with a trophy emoji, because it’s rare to have that right. The aim of the Premier League is to win the Premier League and we did it. I don’t care about set pieces, boring football, or the ‘dark arts’. I care that for the first time in more than 20 years Arsenal got over the line. That doesn’t mean we can’t address these statements as borderline crazy.
One bad loss to Brighton means nothing. For starters the Seagulls are a great team and earned every bit of it, but also, if we really can’t believe in the project after a fantastic previous season then what is even the point? I totally get that football is a ‘well what have you done for me lately’ sport but we’re five games in. FIVE! I would say we’ve got a whole human hand to go before any Arsenal fan should panic, and even then. Look at where we currently are.
We're the first team to beat Arsenal 3-0 in any competition since... us, in May 2023. 😅👏
— Brighton & Hove Albion (@BHAFC) September 19, 2026
A win over Man City in the Community Shield which is always tricky, and a victory over Chelsea who for an eon were our bogey team. We’re also two points better off than we were last year – when we finished top of the league – and we have a silly squad. If we don’t battle till the end with the depth we have I’ll be the first to admit something has gone wrong. All the signs so far suggest the opposite, though.
You know it’s out of whack when – and I almost quote – people were saying Arteta has “lost it” because he didn’t bring 16-year old Max Dowman on to see what he could do at the Amex. I mostly agree with the idea if you’re good enough, you’re old enough, but I’m also fond of ‘he’s a child so if we can nurture him let’s do that instead’. The team would also be a mess if we needed to rely on a prodigy rather than players who have all the experience the Premier League can bring.
It’s actually a compliment, as it comes with the territory of being Champions, but I bet Brighton fans feel truly insulted. They were the better team. Fabian Hurzeler out-gunned (pun intended) Arteta and, given that they are third going into the International Break... well, I tip my cap.
A Competitive Prem is Good for Football
Even if it makes it more difficult, I’m always going to be an advocate for a season where anyone can beat anyone else, especially as Brighton can be a template for others.
You’ll punch me if I tell you Hull could follow in their footsteps, but that’s how people felt about Brighton ten years ago. They were about to be promoted after their 93-point season when the expected thoughts arrived. Everyone had them going back down to the Championship. They didn’t. They finished 15th.
I just don’t think there’s anything disastrous about being wrecked by a team who has started this season in great form and likely took advantage of Arsenal’s over-confidence. In fact, I welcome it.
Chances of winning the Premier League this season according to Opta Probability:
— Simon Phillips (@siphillipssport) September 21, 2026
◉ 43.65% - Arsenal
◉ 39.76% - Man City
◉ 5.71% - Liverpool
◉ 4.15% - Brighton
◉ 0.95% - Chelsea
[via @Squawka]
Arteta is a wonderful loon and will already have a dossier on what we did wrong and why the team can never do it again. And if you do… well I’ll point you to Viktor Gyökeres. We should talk about him during this PL downtime. I don’t think Mikel is keen on him anymore…
So let’s do a quick summing up. Second in the league, three points behind City, one loss in five, rivals telling me Arsenal losing a single match is proof we suck. That just sounds like we’ve successfully got in people's heads much like City before us, or Klopp’s Liverpool before that. I would mention Arne Slot, but I’m not entirely sure I didn’t invent him in my head given how quickly he came and went.
At the very least we’re not going into the break bottom of the league. Sorry Tottenham fans. It sort of ties in. Even if we did implode we’d always have that…
*Not true. Tottenham seem destined to never break this curse
Alec Hayward 
Oliver Seymour 