Wenger relief as Arsenal triumph

Arsene Wenger said he was proud of his Arsenal players after Santi Cazorla lifted the gloom around the Emirates Stadium with a crucial double in a 2-1 win over Aston Villa.

Wenger had faced renewed calls for his resignation after last weekend's FA Cup exit against second-tier Blackburn and the midweek Champions League defeat against Bayern Munich only added to the impression of a club spiralling out of control.

In the circumstances anything but a victory against struggling Villa would have given Wenger's critics more ammunition to attack the Frenchman, so there was a sense of relief when Cazorla bagged the winner with five minutes remaining.

Until then Arsenal had laboured to kill off third-bottom Villa, who recovered from Cazorla's first-half opener to equalise through Andreas Weimann after the break.

Cazorla's efforts moved Arsenal within one point of fourth placed Tottenham and Wenger said he was impressed with the way his under-fire Gunners' players responded to their difficult situation.

"I'm proud of the attitude of the team," Wenger said. "We went through some difficult days and responded in a united way."

When Wenger gave a tetchy press conference before the Bayern match it seemed the pressure was starting to take its toll.