Arsenal 2-1 Brighton: WSL leaders come from behind to go four points clear

Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall says his side’s comeback win against Brighton showed they were rediscovering their “identity and mentality”.

Emma Koivisto ended Albion’s eight-game goal drought to open the scoring, only for Vivianne Miedema to level before Beth Mead won it with a free-kick.

“This period has made us better,” Eidevall said.

“I don’t think we started January well, but I think we have been doing good work getting our structure back, getting our identity and mentality back.

“For me as a coach, as long as I can see the solutions, as long as I can see the vision and how we can work towards that, that’s not stressful for me. That’s very enjoyable working with that.”

The Gunners dominated but fell behind to a Koivisto header that ended a 465-minute WSL goal drought for Albion.

But the home side came out firing after the break and struck back through Miedema’s close-range finish from a superb Mead free-kick.

Mead then ensured all three points, curling in a brilliant free-kick after being fouled.

The 26-year-old’s assist for the first goal means she has now drawn level with Karen Carney for the most in WSL history with 35.

Champions Chelsea in second have a game in hand, but the Gunners now hold a crucial lead after a mini dip in form that had seen them lose to Birmingham and draw with Manchester City.

Brighton’s defeat means they have taken just one point from a possible 18 since a run of three straight wins in October and November, leaving them eighth in the table.

Arsenal rediscover their bite

That sole point taken by Albion of late could yet prove a key one in this WSL title race, coming from a goalless draw with Arsenal’s title rivals Chelsea on Sunday.

At the break at Meadow Park on Thursday, it looked as though they were going to go one better against the Gunners to throw the initiative back to Emma Hayes’ side.

However, after having dominated possession but fashioning only a Miedema header from a corner that Maya le Tissier cleared off the line in the first half, Arsenal were a different animal after the break.

Mead was central to a renewed attacking vigour, picking up the ball and driving at the Brighton defence.

Eidevall said she was back playing with aggression again. “I missed that Beth Mead a little bit in the latest games,” he added.

“When she is that aggressive, I think she is world class and that helped us a lot in the second half.”

She laid the equaliser on a plate for Miedema with a pinpoint free-kick to the back post that the Dutch striker had only to poke in for her eighth WSL goal of the season and 15th in total.

Mead then took on responsibility herself, drawing a foul on the edge of the box from Victoria Williams with a purposeful run before curling home the resulting set-piece with aplomb.

Once behind, Brighton had little more to offer, with their second-half gameplan reliant on containing an Arsenal side that simply had too much class for them.