Arsenal hero Robin van Persie hailed their victory over Aston Villa last night. The Gunners were up against it at half-time thanks to goals from Richard Dunne and Darren Bent at the Emirates Stadium.

But the same two players gave away penalties in the second half, both converted by Van Persie, sandwiching a fortuitous Theo Walcott strike, as the Gunners roared back for a 3-2 win.

"It was very important," Van Persie told ESPN. "At 2-0 down, it's always going to be a hard task to come back.

"But a crazy six minutes in the second half changed the game.

"Credit to the team. We all did it. Credit to all of them because we worked hard and we're still in it."

Van Persie said the team still believe they can win silverware this season.

"(It's) another chance, because we're still in the Champions League," he said. "We worked so hard. We are excited for the next round."