Troy Deeney slams big-money Arsenal signing who ‘should have been hooked at half-time’

Mikel Arteta made a mistake in not hauling off Bruno Guimaraes at half-time in Arsenal’s 3-0 drubbing at Brighton.

That's the view of Troy Deeney, who was on on punditry duties for talkSPORT’s Game Day Live as the Gunners suffered their first defeat of the season at the Amex Stadium.

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It was a day to forget for the Premier League champions who struggled to find their usual rhythm on the south coast, with Pascal Gross, Charalampos Kostoulas and Chema Andres all on target for the hosts.

Among the glut of underperforming stars, big money summer signing Guimaraes was singled out by Deeney.

What did Troy Deeney say about Bruno Guimaraes?

The Brazilian was unable to repeat his heroics from a week ago at Sunderland and the former Watford captain called for the £75million man to be hooked at the interval.

Arsenal boss Arteta did not immediately follow Deeney instructions, but the former Newcastle skipper was eventually replaced by Mikel Merino in the 59th minute.

Just minutes before the substitution, Deeney said: “There is no way Bruno Guimaraes can stay on this pitch; he's been really, really poor.”

Deeney also reserved criticism for Bukayo Saka who struggled to make the desired impact.

The winger was replaced by 16-year-old Max Dowman in the final ten minutes to cap off a frustrating afternoon.

Deeney followed up his assessment of Guimaraes by adding: “But I also think if we’re going to have that same level of pressure and expectation, Saka has been terrible.”

But the day belonged to a Brighton side who are now the Premier League’s top scorers with 16 goals from five matches – six more than any other team.

The win capped off a fine week for Fabian Hurzeler’s side who came in the match on the back of a 5-0 win at Coventry last weekend and a stunning comeback victory over Manchester United in midweek.

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Six of Brighton’s starters featured in Wednesday’s night’s 3-2 win at Old Trafford and provided a high-energy display of pressing and attacking prowess to keep the Gunners at bay.

The club’s supporters certainly enjoyed their final fixture before the international break and even found the time to issue a cheeky jibe at the Premier League champions.

After scoring their third, Brighton fans were heard chanting: “Are you Tottenham in disguise?” at the north London side.

The win moves Brighton provisionally up to third in the table, two points adrift of leaders Manchester City who host Sunderland on Sunday.

Hurzeler lauds his heroic stars

Following Saturday's 3-0 win, Hurzeler challenged his side to continue their momentum when the Premier League resumes in three weeks time.

"It's always important to enjoy these moments. We were horrible to play against," the Seagulls boss said.

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"Intensity, intensity, winning the personal duels…we have to have the belief to compete with the best teams in the league.

"My players really trust each other on the pitch. If one player is out then another can replace him.

"Overall we wanted to be really good in every phase. We needed to be at the highest level.

"We go game by game. After the international break we have a lot of games. After wins like this we have to stay humble and understand why we had this win. We have to keep on going."