Gunner Gallas comes to the front when he’s needed most

Brave and resilient, Wigan seemed as if they might be heading for an unlikely draw against the League leaders, who missed the guile of the suspended Cesc Fabregas.

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William Gallas had other ideas. Driving forward from the heart of defence he started and finished the move that broke the deadlock after 83 minutes before Tomas Rosicky added a second two minutes later.

Gallas did it with a ferocious determination that captured the breath. With Arsene Wenger, the club have a winning leadership duo. You could call it victory by example and it typified Arsenal's spirit, which Gallas has embodied since his transfer from Chelsea.

Ever since his move across London to accommodate Chelsea's obsession with signing Ashley Cole, Wenger has looked to have had the better of the deal. On this evidence it is not even a contest. Defensive partner Kolo Toure said:

"William gives everything for the club. He helps the young players. He is the ideal captain on and off the pitch.

"He is loud in the dressing room. Yet he has a big heart. Everything he says and does is for the team and that is a valuable quality in a captain.

'When you have played in a World Cup Final, have the maturity of having played in Europe and you are just over 30, you have all the qualities for leading on the pitch."

Strong leadership has always been an Arsenal quality — right back to the days of Frank McLintock, David O'Leary and Tony Adams. It was also evident in two other Frenchman, Emmanuel Petit and Patrick Vieira.

Toure said: "When Titi (Petit) was here he was outstanding and Patrick was also strong. I have been fortunate to play under some fantastic captains and you just follow their leadership.

"William deserves to be mentioned among those names because he is the strong figure and the younger players in the side listen to him."

The strongest quality in the side, however, is their belief that the goal will ultimately come if they keep playing their football.

Wigan, with new manager Steve Bruce in the stand, were seeking to end a sequence of seven defeats. Bruce, himself a stirring leader as a player, should arrest that run because he definitely has something to work on.

Marcus Bent, their bulldog of a striker, said: "We have to get more shots on target and cut out some of the unforced errors in defence. If you look at the table, it will only take a couple of good results for us to move up.

"We need to be bold and that might be easier under a new manager. I played against Steve Bruce and he was an outstanding player and professional."

Frank Barlow, in charge of Wigan for probably the last time, believes David Whelan has chosen wisely. "I think Steve has great integrity," he said.

"When he played he was a leader and when he captained he was a leader.

"We think leadership is far harder to find now than it was 25 years ago. He has it in abundance."