Abou Diaby has admitted he was surprised at his early return to first-team action with Arsenal but insisted he was ready to make his comeback. The French midfielder, who has struggled with injuries throughout his Emirates Stadium career, had been out of action since sustaining a thigh problem in the defeat by Chelsea at the end of September.
He lasted 61 minutes of Sunday's 2-0 defeat to the Premier League champions,and told the club's official website: "I feel good physically. Of course I have been out for a long time so I am not at my best, but importantly I did not get any reaction. This is good for the future.
"I knew the day before the game that I was starting, so I just had to prepare for that. I had been out for a long time, so I did not expect to be on the pitch so quickly.
"But it doesn't matter, you just need to be prepared and see how it goes."
