Arsenal
Wenger's Arsenal are currently in red hot formReuters

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger feels that his side is developing into a completely "different team" as the 2014/15 Premier League season nears its climax.

The Gunners are now only one point behind second-placed Manchester City, who were defeated by Burnley following their fifth straight Premier League win against West Ham on Saturday.

Olivier Giroud opened the scoring for his side in the closing moments of the first half, before strikes from Aaron Ramsey and Mathieu Flamini secured three points for the Gunners.

And Wenger, who insists that his side needs to keep on going, feels that the Gunners have become a much "stronger" side.

"We just have to keep going. We have won eight of the last nine and we are stronger today than we were at the start of the season," said Wenger. "We dropped off in this league because we won one of six at the start of the season. Today we are a different team."

The Frenchman feels that Arsenal initially struggled due to players suffering from fatigue after the 2014 World Cup.

"We suffered a lot from the post-World Cup fixtures, players came back and they weren't ready to play," he added.

The 65-year-old went on to praise Giroud, who has been very impressive of late, scoring six goals in the last seven fixtures.

"Giroud is a boy who has played at 22 or 23 in division three [in France]. He's (sic) come out and has become an international footballer," added Wenger.

"You need some mental strength to do that because there's no red carpet there. You have to work hard to get out there and get to the top - you need some special strength."

Meanwhile, Wenger believes that the Gunners can still progress to the quarter-finals of the Champions League despite suffering a 3-1 home defeat against AS Monaco in the first leg of the round of sixteen.

"We have come out of a good week because we have played at Manchester United [in the FA Cup], we have played the London derby today and we need the belief to prepare well for Monaco. Let's do that and after (sic) we will see," he added.

"If you have no belief you have no chance. We have to believe that we can do it. This time Monaco are favourites so we have to go there, give absolutely everything."