Following his team’s victory over Chelsea and return to the top of the Premier League standings, Mikel Arteta vowed not to let his players’ heads drop.

Last month, the Gunners had an eight-point lead but had fallen behind Manchester City after a run of four losses. This skid was broken with a convincing 3-1 victory over the struggling Blues.

Prior to Gabriel Jesus clinching the victory before halftime, captain Martin Odegaard scored twice, with Noni Madueke’s maiden league goal serving as merely a consolation for Frank Lampard’s guests.

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Despite their recent run, Arteta had refused to rule Arsenal out of the title race and this win took them two points clear – although they have played two more games than City.

The Spaniard admitted he did not want to see morale fall after a galling loss at City last week saw their lead all but dashed.

“It is four games to go, we are at the top right now,” he said.

“We cannot do that (let heads drop), to be where we are after 10 months against the team we are fighting against, being there and having the possibility to be top – we have to enjoy it and embrace it, maximise the opportunity that we have because we don’t know what is going to happen.

“We wanted to have a very different approach to the game, and we did it right from the beginning.

“The team is back to its best. We wanted to prove we had that fire in the belly. I could see that in the last few days, and we prepared (for) the game well.

“Mentally we arrived in the right mood and with the right level of energy. Everything went for us as well, which is important.

“We’ve had a couple of difficult weeks with very different games, with a lot of emotions involved. We’re back to the top of the league – let’s see what happens.”

While it was a memorable night for the captain, skipper Odegaard will want to quickly forget it.

After playing the Gunners on November 6, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang made his first start for Chelsea.

However, he only played for 45 minutes before being replaced, despite having nine touches, four of which were kick-offs.

Arteta was gushing with appreciation for Odegaard and the leadership displayed by the international from Norway.

“He has 14 goals this season, his contribution to the team, his leadership skills, I’m really pleased with him,” he added.

“He has been exceptional for us, his contribution every single day. I think he has done that (set the tone) on many occasions. What Martin has done this season deserves a lot of credit.”

Frank Lampard, Chelsea’s interim head coach, believes his players are “too nice” because they have now lost all six games. Chelsea is still in the lowest part of the table.

“We weren’t good enough,” he conceded.

“We were too nice to play against, too passive. In possession we weren’t playing balls over their press, or winning second balls.

“Chelsea have been a big success for 20 years domestically and in the Champions League, at the moment we’re not in that position.

“But from the moment I’ve been here it’s been evident we’re too nice as a team.

“We can’t change things overnight but we had better get there quickly because we have another game at the weekend and games to come.”