Arsenal midfielder Santi Cazorla has heaped praise on his team-mates for the spirit on show as they battled to a 2-1 victory over Crystal Palace on Saturday.

The Gunners, who are 21.00 to win the Champions League, climbed to third in the Premier League table after taking all three points away from Selhurst Park and have now won eight of their last nine outings in all competitions.

Cazorla was on the scoresheet against the Eagles, netting his eighth of the campaign, while Olivier Giroud also chipped in before Glenn Murray pulled one back late on.

Arsenal looked good in the first half but came under some pressure during periods throughout the second 45 minutes and had to dig in defensively to keep Palace at bay.

The Spaniard believes it is important for the squad to show plenty of grit in order to grind out the result and keep building momentum.

Cazorla said: “It was a very good three points for us. It was a difficult game on a very difficult pitch. The team fought together and we need to play the same in the next game.

“In these games it’s always very important to focus, because there are a lot of long balls, free-kicks and set-pieces. We only had problems [with that] in the last two or three minutes but the team defended very well.”

The north London club return to action in the Champions League on Wednesday when they host Monaco in the first leg of their last-16 tie.

Wenger’s men also remain on course to defend their FA Cup crown and will face Manchester United at Old Trafford in the quarter-finals of the famous cup competition.