Goals from Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil ended Arsenal's run of four successive away defeats with a scratchy 2-1 victory over struggling Middlesbrough in their Premier League clash on Monday.
The result left Arsenal in sixth, seven points behind fourth-placed Manchester City who have played one game more.
Arsenal defender Rob Holding has revealed he was given a crash course in Arsene Wenger's experimental formation which yielded a much-needed win at Middlesbrough on Monday.
Downing was presented with a half-chance to fire his side ahead five minutes later when Nacho Monreal could only help substitute George Friend's cross into his path, but he blazed high and wide from a tight angle.
Middlesbrough went close to a second with a stooping Daniel Ayala header which Arsenal keeper Petr Cech saved well, allowing his defence to scramble clear.
Attacker Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain said Arsenal had let their standards to slip, having gone on a four-match losing run from home in the league.
"I felt overall we dealt well with it, in the first half". Hopefully that will give us more confidence.
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We were competing with among the top teams in Europe. "When you play football you want to play every game but I think he made a great choice".
'Mathematically it is still possible, even if it is hard, but we will give it a go'.
"Yes, I did something I had not done in 20 years - but that just goes to show that even at my age I can still change", he smiled.
" "Sometimes we want to have the ball but when a team lacks confidence just to change the system can help believe something different.""We needed to play forward a little bit earlier, and I thought we did that, and when we scored I thought we would start to put them under pressure".
"They're fighting for points at the bottom but we're fighting to get back on track, so it was important to get the three points".
One of the many criticisms of the Arsenal team over the last few years has been the perceived lack of leaders on the pitch and afterwards on NBC former Gunner Lee Dixon asked Wenger to tell him who the leaders were in the dressing room.
"This group doesn't know how to give in, they will never, ever stop", he said.
"I felt that it added a bit more stability on the long balls", he said. "I feel overall it is not a long-term plan, but punctually it can work".
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