A Perfect October

October 29, 2025

Emirates Stadium, London

October ended in perfection: six games, six wins, twelve goals scored, none conceded. Arsenal became the first English team in history to win six matches in a single month without allowing a goal. Four points clear at the top of the Premier League, unbeaten leaders in their Champions League group, and now EFL Cup quarter-finalists — Mikel Arteta’s side are in uncharted form.

History was made before kick-off. With Martinelli injured, 15-year-old Max Dowman became Arsenal’s youngest-ever player in a competitive match. Six years before his birth, a teenage Cesc Fàbregas had scored in the same competition; tonight, Dowman inherited that lineage. Alongside him, Andre Harriman-Annous made his debut.

Yet Arsenal’s 250th match in the competition began nervously. Hincapié’s error, Nordgard’s misplaced passes, and Brighton’s direct play unsettled the rotated side. Kepa Arrizabalaga, on his home debut, denied Baleba and Rutter in quick succession. Tzimas missed narrowly, while Arsenal’s few moments of creativity came through Merino’s clever touches and Eze’s control. A deft backheel from Merino nearly put Harriman-Annous through, but the youngster hesitated, still learning the rhythm of first-team football.

By the half-hour mark, Brighton had eight shots to Arsenal’s two. Kepa stood tall, Mosquera intervened heroically, and Van Hecke missed an open header. Then Dowman ignited the crowd, tormenting De Cuyper down the flank with fearless rhythm. Arsenal reached halftime intact, the momentum shifting.

After the interval, Arsenal took control — sharper, hungrier, relentless. Dowman drove inside demanding a penalty that never came, while Kepa preserved parity with another fine save. In the 57th minute, the breakthrough arrived: Merino’s backheel released Myles Lewis-Skelly, whose cutback found Nwaneri to finish low beyond Steele. The image that defined the night — Merino embracing two Hale End prodigies— felt like the club’s philosophy made flesh.

Brighton threatened again through Ayari, but Hincapié blocked. Dowman departed, replaced by Saka. Minutes later: Timber’s driving run found Harriman-Annous, Steele parried, and Saka buried the rebound. Two-nil, game over.

Trossard hit the post late on, but the perfection endured. Arsenal’s sixth straight clean sheet, eighth consecutive win, unbeaten in eleven matches. The critics who once called Arsenal “Set-piece FC” will need to find new words. Arsenal now feels unmistakably Wengerian — youthful, disciplined and beautiful.

Arsenal 2 – 0 Brighton & Hove Albion

(E. Nwaneri ‘57, B. Saka ‘76)