Ex-Arsenal star lays into £75m man who was 'a million miles off it' at Brighton

Former Arsenal star Paul Merson has slammed Bruno Guimaraes for his display against Brighton and Hove Albion, insisting the Brazil international appeared 'a million miles off it. ' The Gunners were thrashed 3-0 by Fabian Hurzeler's side, suffering their first defeat of the season.

The Gunners had the opportunity to match a 123-year club record of eight consecutive victories across all competitions to begin a campaign, but Brighton dominated proceedings. Pascal Gross gave the hosts the lead after 31 minutes before Charalampos Kostoulas doubled their advantage on the stroke of half-time.

The Arsenal boss raced down the tunnel in a bid to rally his troops at the interval, but the Gunners were handed a dose of their own medicine when Chema Andres powered home a header from a corner shortly before the hour mark.

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It proved a frustrating afternoon for Guimaraes on his maiden start for the club, losing possession just seven minutes into proceedings.

Kostoulas tried an ambitious effort from distance, but David Raya managed to push the shot over the crossbar, though it served as an ominous warning of what lay ahead.

Speaking on Sky Sports' Soccer Saturday about Guimaraes' performance, Merson said: "He was a million miles off it, million miles off it. I said at half-time that he'd come off but he stayed on another 10 minutes or so.

"No, it was really quick for him. They closed him down. I don't care how good you are, if people get your head down and close you down and make you work, it becomes a leveller.

"That's what Brighton have done. They haven't given anybody time on the ball to get their head up and pass it, and they've been absolutely brilliant."

Following the final whistle, a clearly frustrated Arteta pulled no punches, saying: "Extremely disappointed. But first of all, we have to congratulate Brighton; they deserved it.

"They were the better team, and from our side, there were certain basics in football that we didn't. Winning the first ball.

"They put us in a really difficult place. The amount of technical errors. We didn't respect any principle of play. We had moments of dominance and control, and we opened them up; we didn't take those chances."

When asked if it was the best result of his career, Seagulls' Fabian Hurzelersaid: "It is a difficult question to ask immediately after the game when the emotions are still high.