My feeling was that his reception in the press, fair or not, would surely undermine his confidence. Yet the lad came out fighting claiming he could do the job. I still was not convinced; he would say that wouldn't he.

Therefore, on Sunday, I expected Lehmann to step out, imagine my surprise, and I expect many others, when Almunia stepped out. No doubt, thousands laughed, and quite a few Arsenal fans were wishing we could sign a goalkeeper the quality of Cech. But who made the biggest bloomer of the two.

Almunia made some excellent saves, was lucky with a well-hit shot, but began to catch crosses that he would and should catch. The transformation was amazing; it was not the same keeper I had watched on Tuesday night against Rosenborg. Yes, we conceded two goals, yes it is too early to say that Manuel will make the top grade, but Wenger’s decision did not seem as crazy after the match as it did before. It must be one of the bravest decisions he has ever made, everybody, including Arsenal fans thought Jens should come back. Some speculated that he had been dropped to teach the team a lesson, I never subscribed to that view; Wenger is not into gesture management. Clearly he believes that he can build a sounder defence around Almunia than Jens Lehmann. If that is the case the implications are immense for Jens.

One irony is that many people were saying Jens was not good enough, and then when he was dropped began to argue the opposite. The Guardian spent at least two pages last week on the Arsenal’s goalkeeping crisis, fair enough, but things have moved on a bit now, it would be good to discuss the implications of Wenger’s decision in the light of Almunia’s most recent performance.