Brighton boss labels Arsenal part of the 'establishment' after win

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Fabian Hurzeler has described Arsenal as part of the Premier League "establishment" that Brighton are attempting to challenge, in a TalkSport appearance that followed the Seagulls' victory over the Gunners.

Speaking on Tuesday afternoon, the Brighton head coach was asked about the win and used the platform to set out his side's wider ambitions rather than dwell on the result itself.

"I wouldn't say it's a perfect game," Hurzeler said. "There are still things to improve, but overall our challenge will be now that we make these kind of exceptional performances normal. This is the challenge we have now, because we have this phrase, we want to challenge the establishment."

He added: "And challenging the establishment doesn't mean to challenge them in one-to-one games. It's like you have to challenge them when you're not playing against them. So you have to be consistent in performances and these kind of performances, they have to get normal for us. And that's, I think, the biggest challenge we can set ourselves."

The numbers behind the defeat

Brighton's win was built on two goals from outside the box, both of them low expected goal chances, and Arsenal contributed to their own downfall at the other end.

Bukayo Saka twice worked his way inside the penalty area without finding the finish, Bruno Guimaraes smashed the ball into the side-netting, Christos Tzolis was poorly set through on goal, and a failed counter-attack preceded Brighton's second.

The performance drew a blunt verdict from inside the Arsenal dressing room, with Jurrien Timber labelling it "unacceptable".

A rare move from a Premier League manager

As football.london's Arsenal reporter Tom Canton noted, the more unusual element was the radio appearance itself. International breaks routinely produce bold statements from players away with their countries, but a head coach going on national radio to discuss a single league win is far less common.

Canton pointed out that he could not recall managers at Everton, Norwich or Leicester doing the same after putting three or more past Pep Guardiola's Manchester City sides in years gone by, and questioned whether the scoreline had elevated the fixture beyond what it actually was.

What is not in dispute is that Brighton deserved the result. The individual battles across the pitch went the home side's way, and Arsenal were second best from first whistle to last.

Hurzeler's framing, though, tells its own story about how Arsenal are now perceived across the division. A club that spent years positioning itself as the challenger to Manchester City's dominance is being cast by opponents as the side to be knocked off its perch.

Whether Brighton can turn one afternoon into the consistency their manager demands will be measured across the coming months. For Arsenal, the immediate task is ensuring the performance that prompted Timber's assessment does not repeat itself when club football resumes.