Robin van Persie
Arsenal's Robin van Persie scored 35 league goals in 2011. REUTERS

Arsenal midfielder Mikel Arteta has lauded team-mate Robin van Persie's 2011 goal scoring exploits and warned the Dutch international is likely to get better in 2012.

Van Persie notched his 35th goal of 2011 in Saturday's 1-0 win against QPR, breaking Thierry Henry's Arsenal record of 34 in the process.

The Dutchman fell one short of Alan Shearer's 1995 Premier League record but Arteta warned Arsenal's top-four rivals that the striker was more than capable of breaking that record over the next 12 months.

"He could have scored more," Arteta told the official Arsenal Web site. "It's obviously something massive to beat the record like that at a club like Arsenal with this history. It's not a small thing.

"You need to have that in your mind if you want to be ambitious but thankfully it's gone now and that might take a bit of pressure off.

"He can keep scoring goals, he has been fantastic. Nobody else has been as helpful for the team as he's been."

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry watched from the stands as van Persie fired the Gunners' to victory at the Emirates Stadium.

Henry is set to re-join his former club on a two-month loan deal from New York Red Bulls and Arteta is relishing the prospect of playing alongside the club's record goal scorer.

"I've always been a big admirer of him, when he was playing here and at Barcelona," said the Spaniard. "It's great to have him around with his experience and his talent - I'm sure he's going to be really helpful.

"He's very good. He's very close with everyone; he's talking with all the lads and has a very, very good attitude.

"I heard a lot of things about him and his character and for being so brave to come back here with the name he has is not easy. He's putting his name on the line yet again and I think that's brave.

"He has the quality and the talent for sure. I don't know how he is physically to play 90 minutes, 60 minutes, 30 or whatever he needs but I think with his experience he can manage that no problem."