Wenger's woe deepens as Brighton beats Arsenal
Arsenal ended a difficult week in miserable fashion as it lost 2-1 to Brighton and Hove Albion at Amex Stadium on Monday (AEDT).
First-half goals from Lewis Dunk and Glenn Murray secured all three points for the home side, despite Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang halving the deficit before the break.
The result is certain to pile more pressure on Gunners manager Arsene Wenger, who was the subject of angry chants from visiting fans demanding his departure.
Arsenal went into the match on the back of consecutive 3-0 defeats to Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final and Premier League, and found itself in more trouble when Dunk broke the deadlock seven minutes in.
Murray's header, his sixth goal in 2018, put Brighton two up after a mistake by Laurent Koscielny, prompting an angry response from the travelling supporters.
Aubameyang got a goal back but it was not enough to prevent a fourth defeat in a row in all competitions for the Gunners, marking their worst run since 2002 and leaving them facing a major challenge to finish in the top four.
Arsenal began the match on the front foot but was behind seven minutes in, with Dunk sweeping the ball into the net from 12 yards out after Shane Duffy had beaten Petr Cech to a corner.
The Gunners keeper saved a good Pascal Gross shot as Brighton threatened again, with Dunk and Duffy both heading over from promising positions as the visiting defence failed to deal with routine set-pieces.
With 26 minutes gone, it gifted the home side its second goal. Koscielny's wayward pass was sent out wide to Gross, and his curling cross from the right was headed down and beneath the body of Cech by Murray.
'We want Wenger out' was heard loudly from the away end but Aubameyang snatched a lifeline out of nothing two minutes before half-time, flicking Granit Xhaka's strike into the net despite the best efforts of Mat Ryan.
Koscielny almost levelled the match just before the break, rattling the left-hand post with a firm header, and only a flying Ryan save stopped Mesut Ozil blasting home just before the hour mark.
Referee Stuart Attwell made a smart call not to award a penalty when Xhaka went to ground in the area, although Sead Kolasinac was fortunate to escape punishment for a shoulder challenge on Ezequiel Schelotto that ended the Brighton full-back's game.
Wenger threw on Danny Welbeck in the closing stages but there was to be no salvation for the Gunners, who are 13 points adrift of fourth-place Tottenham with just nine matches remaining ahead of their huge UEFA Europa League trip to face AC Milan.
