WENGER PUTS HIS FAITH IN GALLAS

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has endorsed the captaincy of William Gallas after confirming that the Frenchman would retain the armband for the forthcoming campaign.

Gallas was widely criticised at the end of last season for failing to unite Arsenal's young squad and reacting petulantly when Birmingham secured a last-minute equaliser at St Andrew's in February. However, Wenger has resisted the temptation to appoint Cesc Fabregas as captain and Gallas will continue in the role for at least another year.

"William has acknowledged that he made some mistakes and he has learnt from them," said Wenger. "He is an important player and he plays in a position where it is easy to be the captain. Some of the other players who could be captain are still a bit young. I believe at the moment that Kolo will be his assistant.

"William got a lot of criticism after what happened at Birmingham but, until then, everyone said he was a fantastic captain, so I think he deserves another go to show his commitment and then [we'll] see where we stand at the end of the season.

"He was not the most gifted player when he was a young boy and he has a good evaluation of his own performances, that's what makes the big players. William has analysed what he has done right and wrong himself."

Meanwhile, Wenger has arrived in Holland for the latest stage in Arsenal's pre-season preparations to be faced with a familiar problem. Already without long-term injury casualties Tomas Rosicky and Eduardo, Wenger's squad has been further eroded by the loss of new signing Samir Nasri to a knee problem and Abou Diaby to a thigh strain. The injury-prone midfielder has already been described as a doubt for next week's Champions League qualifier against FC Twente.