Arteta: Brighton deserved it, big lesson for Arsenal

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta admitted his side were well beaten after a 3-0 defeat at Brighton's Amex Stadium on Saturday, their first loss of the Premier League season.

"Extremely disappointed. But first I think we have to congratulate Brighton for the victory. I think they deserve it, I think they were the better team," Arteta said at his post-match press conference.

Arteta identified a failure to win first duels and second balls as central to the performance. "From our side, there were certain basics you need to accomplish in football, especially in the Premier League that we were very far from," he said.

The Spaniard acknowledged Arsenal did create moments of control but lacked the finishing quality to capitalise. "When we had moments of dominance and control, we did open them up, but we didn't finish those actions with the quality that is required to compensate for the things we did wrong."

Arteta also addressed the midfield pairing of Declan Rice and Bruno Guimaraes, saying the partnership would develop. "It's something that will for sure evolve, they've only played together a few minutes in these early stages, and that relationship will for sure improve and give us a lot of joy."

On his decision not to make changes at half-time, Arteta said he believed it was not the right moment given what Arsenal planned for the second half, though he conceded the game ultimately slipped away. "By the time we got some momentum, it was probably too late."