Nasri does the business as Arsenal shine on opening day

Arsenal 1 West Bromwich Albion 0

Sandwiched in between coaching sessions at Ipswich, where he was assistant to George Burley, he made Highbury his second home as Arsene Wenger turned young hopefuls into household names.

Samir Nasri scores on his league debut for Arsenal against West Brom

Emmanuel Petit, Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry, Robert Pires, Kolo Toure and Cesc Fabregas are among the names to emerge from the laboratory at Arsenal's London Colney training centre.

Mowbray, now manager at newly promoted West Bromwich, attempted to pick Wenger's brains back then and then use the knowledge to pick them off in his first visit to The Emirates. As if.

This is Arsenal, still in need of a bit of spit and polish after a turbulent summer, but boasting the talents of Samir Nasri, among others, following his eagerly anticipated arrival from Marseille.

Instantly recognisable as an Arsenal player - deft touch, sweet turns and the balance of a ballerina - Nasri's fourth-minute goal was the slender difference between two teams determined to please the purists.

'Arsenal's philosophy does not change, it is the individuals who change,' admitted Mowabray. 'The passing and the movement is the same: they are the benchmark.

'Quality players cost money but I think the biggest factor is the mental capacity to take in what you are trying to teach. Once we get players who can do that, we will have a team which follows that philosophy — a passing, moving, thoughtful team.

'The secret is the way Arsene Wenger has done it. You don't pay £30m for a player, you identify the talent very early and nurture it.

 Arsenal's Emmanuel Adebayor and WBA's Jonathan Greening tussle for the ball at the Emirates

'Arsenal are the benchmark and I'd like to think that in three or four years, they might struggle to get the ball off us a few times.'

Wishful thinking, but Mowbray is upwardly mobile. With the first phase (promotion) achieved, the second (survival) will certainly take some doing.

Mowbray's team scored over 100 goals in all competitions last season, reaching the FA Cup semi-final and streaking past Stoke City to win the Football League championship.

The Barclays Premier League may be football with bells and whistles, but teams at the very top have matchwinners all over the pitch.

William Gallas and Emmanuel Adebayor rescued them in their Champions League qualifier against FC Twente last week and Nasri became Arsenal's third different goalscorer this season when he finished off a typically well worked move involving Gael Clichy and Denilson.

They continue to miss the ingenuity of Fabregas, who will not return from injury until the second leg against FC Twente on August 27 at the earliest, but The Next Generation got Arsenal's Premier League season off to an acceptable start.

Denilson, off the pace last Wednesday but on his game against West Bromwich, may yet establish himself in the centre of Arsenal's midfield and, incredibly, Johan Djourou is showing signs that he can compete with Toure for a place alongside William Gallas.

'It's always difficult to assess at the start of the season how good Denilson will be," added Wenger. "But they can only develop if they play.

Arsene Wenger has every reason to be pleased about new signing Nasri

'It's a tricky situation, but we not only make results but we develop players as well. People want to see big names, but they also want to see good players.'

He has certainly identified another in Nasri and although he is not noted for scoring goals, his fourth minute finish was expertly taken.

At £10.5m he did not come cheap, but Wenger took advantage of the left midfielder's truncated final season with Marseille. Nasri, a former young France Player of the Year, missed much of it with meningitis, but there are no long-term effects.

He has been put on a weight training programme to help prepare his physique for the bully boys in the Premier League, but has the ability to poke the ball past the biggest of them.

'The boss (Wenger) told me I would need time, maybe six months, to adapt but I actually felt good straight away. Before the game the manager told me everything would be fine and with the football we play at Arsenal, we would be alright.

'There was a bit more contact than in France, but the main change was the intensity of the game. Everyone told me how different it would be in England so I have a personal programme.'

Stick with The Professor's and he will be just fine.

Arsenal: Almunia 6; Sagna 6, Gallas 6, Djourou 6, Clichy 7; Walcott 6 (Toure 72min, 6), Denilson 7, Eboue 6, Nasri 7; Bendtner 6 (van Persie 68, 6), Adebayor 5.

West Bromwich Albion: Carson 7; Hoefkens 6, Barnett 6, Meite 6, Robinson 6; Cech 6 (MacDonald 68, 5), Morrison 6, Brunt 6 (Beattie 80, 6); Kim 5, Miller 7 (Bednar 74, 5).

Man of the match: Denilson.

Referee: H Webb.