Kehl and Klopp delight in Dortmund success

• Dortmund defender Sebastian Kehl says the score could have been greater than 2-0
• BVB coach Jurgen Klopp hails a "great performance" – "it was nearly perfection" 
• Arsène Wenger and Jack Wilshere speak of Arsenal enduring a "difficult night"

Sebastian Kehl, Dortmund defender
I'm not really surprised [by how dominant we were]. We know we can be very good when we put a lot into it and that's what happened tonight. Arsenal never really got into the game, they never really got going, and in the end we scored and deserved to win based on the way we played. We were alert, in good form and that caused them a lot of problems

I never really felt that [it wasn't going to be our day] because they never got a hold in the game. Apart from one minor chance in the first half, Arsenal never really offered much. I was very confident after we got the first goal and I knew we'd be going for it again in the second half. We could easily have won three or four-nil.

We knew that Robert Lewandowski's departure would hit us hard, but also that we could compensate for him if we stuck together as a team. We saw that tonight, we did really well. The lads up front worked really hard, mucking in with their defensive duties, and they were always dangerous going forward. They did a great job and it makes it a lot easier for the rest of the team to defend. We made a real step forward tonight.

We've only played one game and we've still got plenty more work to do. We know there are going to be some tough group games coming up. A good start tonight was incredibly important for us, especially at home against Arsenal. It'll do us a lot of good, but it was only the first step and there's still plenty of the group stage to come.

Ciro Immobile, Dortmund striker
I'm really happy and feeling great. I'd waited long enough for my first goal here and then to score it in the Champions League is particularly special. The goal wasn't unimportant either. It's hard to describe the situation before the goal, but the important thing is that we got it in the net in the end. It was important to get off to a winning start because we're in a tough group and every point is going to count.

Kevin Grosskreutz, Dortmund midfielder
We played some sensational football tonight, but I'm just happy to have got the three points. We really pulled out all the stops again tonight and deserved to win. I'm delighted for Ciro, who played really well. We know what he's capable of. We earned this victory as a team and I've always said that if we really put the effort in as a team, it's tough for any team to take anything from us.

Dortmund salute their fans at full time©Getty Images

Jürgen Klopp, Dortmund coach
It was a great performance from my team, it was really strong. We were brave, we were fast and we had everything we needed to win this game. If you let Arsenal have one metre of space they will hurt you.

We need to be brave against strong players like these and you have to be brave enough to lose. I enjoyed this game from the first minute to the last. We did what we needed to do to win. It was nearly perfection. If you see games like this it is the best job in the world.

We wanted to play pressing football and we did it in a perfect way. That's the kind of football I really love. We have been very aggressive and purposeful. It was a fantastic start to the Champions League.

Arsène Wenger, Arsenal manager
It is a difficult night for us, but congratulations to Dortmund – they were the better team. We have had a disappointing performance. We had two good chances to score first, but then we ran into counterattacks. It was a very difficult game tonight. We lost the ball 80 metres away from our goal and we still had three against one at the back. So it is difficult to understand how we conceded the goal. They were very strong in midfield, stronger than us. As a team we were not at their level.

Jack Wilshere, Arsenal midfielder
We knew what Dortmund were all about. We didn't start great and once they come onto you and their fans get behind them, it's a difficult night. We struggled with that [Dortmund's pressing game]. You could see that was their game plan and they executed it well, but we've got to be a bit brighter early on. We need to play a bit longer instead of trying to play football in our own half because once we lose it we're in a dangerous position and they made that count.

If we'd have got into half-time at 0-0 it would have been a little bit different, but unfortunately they got the goal on the breakaway and it was their game from there really. We'll bounce back from this. We've got a home game next and we'll be looking to get three points.

It's always difficult when you're 1-0 down, but we regrouped at half-time and wanted to come back into the game. They then got one early and that sort of killed the game off, so unfortunately it wasn't our match.