One-nil behind, talisman injured, a wave of illness that swept through the team and became increasingly adrift in the title race. For half an hour, Arsenal felt the cold at Brentford.
The usual questions were swirling as Bryan Mbeumo put the Bees 1-0 up, with Arsenal going more than a quarter of the game without a shot on target and without a comeback away win in the Premier League in almost two years.
Are Arsenal good enough to keep up with Liverpool? Is a striker needed during the January transfer window? Is Mbeumo that player?
An hour and three goals later, Arsenal revisited some of those questions even though they were still being asked, especially about whether Arteta's side are short on numbers.
“When I see the willingness of the team to play through everything, the versatility we can create inside to play with our own idea, the answer is no,” Arteta said.
“But we don't know if something else will happen or if we'll have other problems. Hopefully not. Hopefully we'll get people back. We need everyone.”
The reasons why Arteta is so steadfast in his faith in this team were on display against Brentford. For the first time in a long time, his team seemed to have balance again.
Normally Arsenal have such a heavy weight on the right that almost 50 percent of their attacks go down the flank where Bukayo Saka normally is. The win over Brentford left the Gunners much more dangerous across the board, almost evenly spread across every avenue of attack.
Part of that is down to the form of their two Brazilians. Gabriel Jesus has scored six goals in his last four games – one more than he scored in his previous 48 games.
Furthermore, the positive introduction of Ethan Nwaneri seemed to be a better fit than the right-wing option the Gunners had against Ipswich five days earlier.
But it is Gabriel Martinelli's form that has emerged from nowhere, especially in the absence of Saka at the other end.
The Brazilian scored fifteen goals in the Premier League in the 2022/2023 season, but a barren run has only just come to an end. His tally of four goals in three games is more than he managed in his previous 26 games. Something clicked, or is there something simpler going on?
Martinelli has a bit more stability behind him. This was the first time Martinelli had paired up with Riccardo Calafiori and Mikel Merino on Arsenal's left – two players Arteta bought this summer to try and improve the team.
Both Calafiori and Merino are regular, natural players on the left, while Arsenal have rotated between different players in those specific positions. Oleksandr Zinchenko and Myles Lewis-Skelly are inverted left-backs, while Jakub Kiwior and Kieran Tierney have struggled for form and minutes.
Calafiori is a more natural option that Arteta actually wants and is looking for, same with Merino in midfield compared to Declan Rice and Jorginho. “We believe that with the unity on the left we can have the dynamics we wanted,” Arteta said of the Spanish midfielder.
Comparisons have rightly been made between the Spaniard and Granit Xhaka, the midfielder alongside Martinelli when he reached double figures in the top flight for Arsenal.
With those combinations behind him, Martinelli seems like a completely different player. Against Brentford he created more chances than anyone else on the pitch, and even more than any player in Arsenal's opposition.
Where Merino also helps is his duel-winning skills and set-pieces, evidenced by Arsenal's second goal in West London – his second for the club, both coming from dead-ball situations.
Arsenal's efficiency from corners in particular is not much of a surprise, as Arteta was not asked about set pieces at all after the match. It was their 25th goal from a corner since the start of last season; no player has scored as many.
“It is a great quality of our team to share the objectives,” said Arteta. “Today we did it again and scored in three very different ways. Great. That's what we need.”
So if Arsenal keep this balance and continue to spread the goals around the team, they might not be as short as they seem.
A productive new striker would undoubtedly help matters, but Arteta's side have shown up before they can make the post-Christmas run needed to win the title without January additions.
Watch Brighton vs Arsenal live in the Sky Sports Premier League this Saturday from 5pm; starting at 5:30 PM
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