Mikel Arteta said he was pleasantly surprised by the character and mental strength Arsenal displayed after they came from behind to earn a point against Bournemouth in his first match in charge.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang cancelled out Dan Gosling’s first-half opener to earn a draw at Bournemouth and Arteta was encouraged by the hunger and attitude of his players before facing Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.

“I’m very pleased with some of the things I’ve seen in terms of attitude, character and the passion we showed, and the fight and the spirit the team showed. Spot on, and probably better than I expected over 90 minutes,” Arteta said. “A lot of things that happened in the game [that] we prepared and I think they [the players] understood them and they tried to take them on board and we liked the final product at the end.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang salvages draw for Arsenal at Bournemouth Read more

“I did not know how long the players would last at that rhythm with the demands I made but the attitude was spot on. There are no negotiables at this club, there are standards that have to be done at this club and they held them.”

Arsenal have won only one of their past 14 matches but Arteta said his players’ determination and body language was particularly pleasing , especially given they trailed at half-time. “I was worried about what would have happened if we conceded a goal,” he said. “And we did but I was very pleased with the character they showed, how they came in at half-time, their faces, their reactions, how much they wanted it.

“Because normally when they are in this process and when you concede a goal, belief goes down and a lot of things that have happened in the past can come back. But completely the opposite happened and that’s a real positive to take on board.”

Mesut Özil returned to the starting lineup as Arteta made three changes and the manager saluted the midfielder’s influence. “He worked and could have been the difference; we could have scored three or four goals from his balls through,” Arteta said. “To be fair his attitude in training since the day I walked into the building has been incredible. I said I was going to give a clean slate to everybody and I want to give it to him.

“When we did the preparation and watching the opponents, and where we could help them [the players], we believed he could be a key point.”

Meanwhile, Granit Xhaka’s agent has told the Swiss newspaper Blick that the midfielder wants to leave for Hertha Berlin. Earlier this week Arteta suggested Xhaka’s long-term future lies at Arsenal but his adviser, José Noguera, said he is closing on a deal worth around £20m.

Xhaka lost the captaincy after refusing to apologise for his petulant reaction to being jeered by Arsenal supporters against Crystal Palace in October.