Arsenal made it 11 wins on the bounce after beating Sporting Lisbon 1-0 through a Danny Welbeck goal at the Estadio Jose Alvalade in the Europa League on Thursday evening. Captain for the night Aaron Ramsey has been speaking about confidence to the squad.

The victory in the Portuguese capital was the Gunners first win in six attempts in the Iberian county and means the North Londoners only need a point from their final three games to qualify for the knock-out stages.

The win also means Emery’s men picked up their third triumph out of three in Group E to go three points clear of their Portuguese rivals.

With tough fixtures to come over the next month kick-off off with a tricky away match at Selhurst Park on Sunday against Crystal Palace on Sunday Ramsey agreed confidence has been high.

Speaking after the game the 27-year-old Welshman said: “It has been a very positive run. In a lot of the games we’ve found it difficult in the first half but we come out then strong in the second half and we’ve blown some teams away. We are delighted to be on this run at the moment.

“I think as a team we are probably working harder, wearing teams down a lot more. We have become stronger as the game goes on and that’s probably why we are creating a lot of opportunities in the second half.

“We haven’t used the gym much to be honest but we have been working hard on the training pitch. Our stats suggest that we have improved in that department working harder as a team.”

Team-man Ramsey has found opportunities limited this season under head coach Emery but was chosen to lead the side at the noisy Jose Alvalade on Thursday.

Ramsey is still perplexed as the why the club withdrew their offer of a new deal in the aftermath of CEO Ivan Gazidis departing for AC Milan – but has not let it affect him as the final months of his existing deal run down.

He added when asked if he was frustrated about his lack of Premier League action: “Yes of course. I think any player who is on the bench would be disappointed not to play but I’m part of the team and I want the team to do well. We are all in it together to try and achieve the same objective.”

When pressed about the contract situation and whether there was still a chance he would stay at the club, he replied: “I will see. Hopefully somebody will come up and tell me why [the offer was withdrawn]. I’ll accept that if there’s a reason. At the moment, no, I haven’t [had anything explained].

“I’m going out and playing the way I have always played. I try to give my best for the team, help the team and try and go out there and play the best I can for myself as well. Nothing’s in my head when I’m out there, I’m just trying to have fun on the football pitch.”

Welsh midfielder Ramsey has been on the books of Arsenal for more than a decade after making the move to Emirates from Cardiff City in 2008, for a fee of £5 million.

Despite enduring lengthy spells sidelined with long-term injuries – most notably when Stoke City’s Ryan Shawcross broke his leg – Ramsey has established himself as one of Arsenal’s most important players.

His goalscoring ability, all-action style and creative flair have long-proven crucial to Arsenal’s fortunes with the Welshman scoring in two FA Cup finals while lifting the trophy three times.

He reflected on why the club withdrew their offer of a new.

He said: “These things happen in football and I’m just concentrating on playing now. I’m not really thinking about anything else too much. I’ve got other thigs as well in my life that I’m delighted with. I had twins last week so everything is good at the moment for me. I can’t complain. I’m just going out there and trying to help this team as much as I can.

“I’m not thinking about anything else apart from playing for Arsenal at the moment so we will see what the future holds further down the line.”

Follow Arsenal reporter Layth on Twitter @laythy29