Arsenal vs. Brighton: Why Mikel Arteta's men must keep clean sheet as pleasing Martin Odegaard stat emerges

Arsenal host Brighton & Hove Albion in Saturday's Premier League clash, in which a depleted defence could spell serious danger for Mikel Arteta and co.

The Gunners will once again head into a top-flight game without at least three defenders, including Gabriel Magalhaes, whom Arteta delivered a pessimistic update on in his pre-game press conference.

The Brazil international is still on his way back from a thigh injury sustained during the most recent national team break, and he is one of three definite defensive absentees for the North London club.

Cristhian Mosquera will be working his way back from an ankle injury for another few weeks, while Ben White is also likely to be missing until mid-January as a result of his hamstring issue.

Furthermore, Piero Hincapie is doubtful for the match due to the shoulder problem he picked up against Everton last weekend, and there are always concerns about Jurrien Timber's fitness while Arteta cannot rest the Dutchman.

Why Arsenal must keep clean sheet in Brighton clash

The hosts' depleted backline may very well prove fatal if a recent pattern is followed, as Arsenal have never beaten Brighton in a Premier League home game when conceding to the Seagulls.

The Gunners only have three wins under their belts from eight top-flight home games against Brighton since 1992, all of which came via a 2-0 scoreline in 2017, 2021 and 2023, for a measly victory rate of 38%.

Among all teams they have faced in five or more Premier League home games, Arsenal only have worse win rates against Wimbledon (36%) and Liverpool (25%), and Brighton have always claimed at least a point when finding the back of the net.

Fabian Hurzeler's men left with a 1-1 draw last season, the same scoreline that Brighton held Arsenal to in 2018-19, and the South Coast side were victorious in North London in each of the 2019-20, 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons.

However, the only time Arsenal have managed a Premier League win over Brighton without a clean sheet was in their final game of the year in 2022, a 4-2 success at the Amex Stadium on New Year's Eve.

The league leaders memorably went 812 minutes without conceding a goal earlier this season, but they have since kept just three clean sheets from their last 10 games in all tournaments, only one of which came at home against Brentford.

Pleasing Martin Odegaard stat emerges before Arsenal vs. Brighton

While Arteta's defence do their best to shut up shop, captain Martin Odegaard - expected to replace Eberechi Eze in the starting lineup - could have a pivotal say at the other end of the Emirates pitch.

The Norway international has only set up two goals in 15 appearances during an injury-hit 2025-26 season, but the underlying numbers suggest that his creative influence is not waning.

Odegaard has created 2.5 chances per 90 minutes in the Premier League season, the third-most of all players with at least 500 minutes played, only behind Manchester City duo Jeremy Doku (3.4) and Rayan Cherki (3.2).

Odegaard registered four key passes in the narrow win over Everton last weekend, although none led to an assist for the ex-Real Madrid starlet, whose teammates must also polish off their best shooting boots to capitalise on his creative excellence.