With a 3-1 victory against Brentford on Wednesday, Gabriel Jesus continued his scorching run as Arsenal cut the margin over Premier League leaders Liverpool to six points.
At the Gtech Community Stadium, Bryan Mbeumo's goal in the first half stunned Mikel Arteta's team. On a rainy and windy evening in west London, however, Jesus equalized before halftime, and Arsenal refused to be blown away. After only scoring once in his first 20 games this season, it was the Brazilian's sixth goal in his past four outings.
Shortly after halftime, Gabriel Martinelli and Mikel Merino scored consecutive goals to put Arsenal ahead of Nottingham Forest in second position. Except their 5-1 thumping of Crystal Palace, the Gunners had struggled through their previous four games, drawing drably against Fulham and Everton before narrowly defeating lowly Ipswich.
Although Liverpool has a game in hand over the north Londoners, Arsenal's first Premier League match of 2025 showed that they are prepared to contend for the championship. Arsenal, who have finished second to Manchester City the last two seasons, have won four straight games and are undefeated in 12 games across all competitions.
Due to a hamstring injury that kept Bukayo Saka out for many months, 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri got his first league start for Arsenal. After scoring Arsenal's game-winning goal against Ipswich, Kai Havertz was not present, but Jesus made sure the German was not overlooked. After overcoming an early setback, Arsenal maintained their stellar record in capital matches and won all ten of their 2024 league London derbies.
David Raya, the goalkeeper for Arsenal, was returning to Brentford for the first time since 2023. The supporters of the old team made fun of the Spaniard, taking great pleasure in his error of judgment, when Brentford took the lead in the 13th minute with their first real attack. Mikkel Damsgaard's ball found Mbeumo on the right wing after Martin Ødegaard gave up possession cheaply.
Mbeumo cut inside Riccardo Calafiori, but Raya should have handled the Cameroon forward's low drive from 20 yards out because of his poor response, which let the ball beat him at the near post. When Raya allowed Mbeumo's shot to elude him and then frantically clawed it away just centimeters before it crossed the line, he almost gave Brentford a second goal.
Following a period of great turmoil, Arsenal responded assertively and equalized the score in the 29th minute. The goalkeeper of Brentford, Mark Flekken, skillfully deflected an impressive strike executed by Thomas Partey from the edge of the penalty area, leading to Jesus seizing the opportunity and executing a precise diving header that gracefully sailed into the net from a distance of six yards.
After a confrontation with Damsgaard that resulted in no penalty from the authorities, Jesus was left with a bleeding mouth. Five minutes after halftime, Arsenal's set-piece skills paid off once more with a sucker punch of their own.