AW "It was vital to win the game, we started quite well, but slowly nerves took over & we played with the handbrake on in the 2nd half, Confidence goes quickly & comes back slowly! Arshavin is getting back to his best! We now have 6 or 7 captains, they're all big personalities! Reus, Alcantara Linked!

• Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admitted he was relieved to come away with a narrow 1-0 win at home against Swansea City today.

The Gunners picked up their first three-point haul of the season thanks to Andrey Arshavin’s opportunistic 40th minute goal at the Emirates Stadium and Wenger said it was important for the morale of the squad to bounce back to winning ways following the humiliating 8-2 loss to Manchester United last time out.

"It was vital to win the game," said the Gunners boss.

"We started quite well, but slowly nerves took over and we played with the handbrake on in the second half.

"We just wanted to get over the line and did not make a mistake, but did not manage to score the second goal.

"Swansea keep the ball well and make it difficult, are quick on the flanks and have the basics of a very good Premier League team, they just do not score."

Wenger admitted that this result does not necessarily mean the Gunners are back but said it was certainly a positive step.

“Confidence goes quickly and comes back slowly. We are not used to the situation we have been in," he added.

"We will come back - we did not have a lot of players today and when everybody is back, we have a chance.

"But first, we need to put a few wins together."

• Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger was delighted with Andrey Arshavin's performance in victory over Swansea City.

Wenger has never doubted the commitment of the Russia international.

He said: "Arshavin has a very good spirit. He had lost confidence but he has a good attitude in training and a good spirit. People think that he doesn’t care but that is not true at all.

"He cares very much and he had just lost confidence. You could see that he was himself again today."

• Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger says they now have a locker room full of leaders.

Thomas Vermaelen, Aaron Ramsey, Tomas Rosicky, Yossi Benayoun, Andrey Arshavin and Chu-Young Park all are captain of their country.

Yet the Gunners' new captain, Robin van Persie, does not wear the armband for Holland.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger said: "All I can say is we have, I think we counted, six or seven captains, so they're all big personalities. I will discover who, like you.

"I have some idea but I wouldn't like to prioritise one more than the other."

• Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger was pleased with his debutants in victory over Swansea City.

Per Mertesacker and Mikel Arteta started the 1-0 win, while Yossi Benayoun came on in the second-half.

"Mertesacker was calm and composed - he just needs to adapt to the pace of the game. He looks very intelligent in his positioning. Arteta played very well, especially in the first half. In the second half it was more difficult for him but you can see he will give us some technical security that this team needs and he wants to play like we play," said Wenger.

"He (Benayoun) brought us something when he came on because he was mobile, he was dynamic and he did well."

• Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has been aware of new signing Mikel Arteta since his days with PSG.

He revealed on Friday that the 29-year-old has been on his radar for a while.

“Yes, for a long time,” he said. “I’ve known him since he played for Paris Saint-Germain.

“He is one of these players who never had the luck in his career to be completely playing in a consistent way in the Champions League. You feel, if he has that opportunity, he can show how good a player he is.

“I think he had the Spanish qualities but because he has played for a long time in England I’m quite amazed how strong he is in the challenge as well.

“He had a good education in Scotland so he is strong in the challenges.”

• Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is happy to call on new signing Per Mertesacker for their Champions League opener at Borussia Dortmund.

The 6ft 6ins centre-back is set for a swift return to Germany at the BvB Station Dortmund next week.

Wenger is confident the German international will prove a sound investment, at a reported £8million certainly cheaper than what Arsenal would have been forced to pay out to close a deal for England defender Gary Cahill at Bolton.

"For us it was interesting - he is more a reader of the game, rather than a physical player," Wenger told a news conference.

"He's tall, is only 26 and he was affordable for us."

Wenger insists he never looks at passports, just what the player can add to the group.

"You just want to play with a good mentality," the Arsenal manager said.

"Usually the English players, defenders, they have a good mentality. You cannot fault them for that, and for me the Germans are similar."

• Arsenal legend Peter Storey has slammed Arsene Wenger's deadline day spending.

The former Highbury midfielder says that all Wenger is doing with his latest transfer ­signings – Mikel Arteta, Yossi Benayoun, Park Chu-Young, Per Mertesacker and Andre Santos – is papering over the cracks in a weakened team.

Storey said: “Arsenal have had a bad start and it seems like Wenger has panicked and he doesn’t normally do that, does he? He seems to have lost the plot. I mean, some of the people he’s bought, they’re not top quality, really.

“With Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri gone, you look at the team and it doesn’t seem that strong.

“Thomas Vermaelen’s latest injury is going to be a big blow, because he is one of the good players they’ve got, so is Jack Wilshere’s ankle problem.”

• Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger insists former AS Monaco striker Park Chu-young is Premier League class.

Wenger outbid Lille for the South Korea captain.

He said: "Park can play both up front on his own, up there with another striker or on the flank. He is a very mobile player and the right age for a striker.

"I was very keen to sign him because he can play the kind of football we want to play."

• Arsenal are furious with England coach Fabio Capello for pointing the finger of blame at their medical staff for Jack Wilshere's injury.

Capello questioned the treatment given by the club to ­midfield star Jack Wilshere.

But an Arsenal source said: “Capello is talking without any knowledge of what went on between the club and Jack in the summer.

“Bone bruising needs rest and that’s what we gave him. It quickly became ­apparent that a month was not enough. It’s as simple as that."

• Borussia Monchengladbach star Marco Reus has admitted an admiration for Arsenal.

The versatile German playmaker, who can play in either the midfielder or attacking position, has recently been linked with a move to Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich.

However, the 22-year-old rejected the possibility of a move to the Allianz Arena, but admitted a clause in his contract means he could leave the club in 2013, and that Arsenal might be able to tempt him into an Emirates switch.

"I have everything I need. Here I have a great environment with great people with whom one can talk about things other than football," he told Der Westen.

"I can leave in 2013 for a specific sum."

Continuing his interview with the German publication, Reus admitted a favoritism towards the Gunners stemming back to his childhood.

"I think everyone has their favourite club from youth. And I was always a fan of Arsenal, because I appreciate the culture of their game," said the former U21 international.