Arsene Wenger praised goalscoring defender William Gallas in the wake of Arsenal’s 1-0 win over Portsmouth on Sunday, saying the Frenchman had answered his critics with his display.
The centre back scored the only goal of the game at the Emirates in the 81st minute to ensure his side took all three points after being frustrated for long spells by Tony Adams’s side.
Gallas was stripped of the club captaincy by Wenger following his outspoken criticism of his team-mates in November, and Wenger hailed the ‘greatness’ of Gallas’s response.
"He answered everybody by his performance on the pitch and that's what you do when you are a great player,” said Wenger.
“He started as a striker and looks most likely to score at set-pieces. He has good timing to attack the ball."
Wenger also believes his current side have taken an unfair amount of criticism from the media, who have constantly questioned their ability to keep pace at the top of The Premier League.
"The team are maturing and have shown great mental strength in the past few weeks,” added the Arsenal boss.
"No team since I have been here have got as bad publicity and I don't think it is fair because they have great character."