Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker has admitted that his side were fortunate to beat Montpellier HSC in their Champions League opener.

After going a goal down from the penalty spot, Lukas Podolski and Gervinho struck in quick succession to give the Gunners a 2-1 victory in France.

While it gets the North Londoners off to a great start in their European campaign, the Germany centre-back knows that his team were lucky to come away with all three points.

"It's a decent result for us. Especially in the second half, we suffered a bit and had a lot of problems. We were lucky, but got the win and we're very happy," said Mertesacker.

"It was a hard game, and we expected that, and in the second half it was even harder than we had expected. Our response after the penalty was very good. We came back in a way that we've already done this season. We have self-confidence, we know we can bounce back from disappointments.

"It seemed like Montpellier didn't have anything to lose, particularly in the second half. Technically they were very good, and passed the ball well. Sometimes you have to be clever, stay focused, and try to stay calm in your half of the pitch. That's what we did. They deserved to get more from the game though."

Arsenal now turn their attention to Manchester City, who they meet in the Premier League on Sunday.