Arteta admitted he was happy after his side saw off a ‘dangerous’ side like the Saints to move eighth in the Premier League.
A fulminating start to the game saw two goals before the first ten minutes. Firstly, it was Stuart Armstrong who put the hosts ahead inside the opening three minutes before Nicolas Pepe pulled parity for Arteta’s men five minutes later.
The Gunners took the lead six minutes before halftime when youngster Bukayo Saka rounded goalkeeper Alex McCarthy after Alexandre Lacazette's threaded ball.
Lacazette made sure the maximum points are well secured with a goal on the 72nd minute mark.
“They are a really dangerous team when they are in front. They are a team that presses and is good in transition but we did a lot of things right,” Arteta said after the game.
“There were phases of play we completely dominated and we looked comfortable and scored some good goals because it is complicated to win here.
“We were much better building up and did not put ourselves in trouble. We were cleaner and more effective and when we had to defend deeper we looked comfortable.
"We conceded from a set-piece but I really like the character of the team. To go 1-0 down after what happened a few days ago, the reaction, the confidence, the way they played, it was positive.
“They are a team that is good at building the game really well but we recognised the triggers to press."
