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Of the plethora of injured players who have spent time in Arsenal's treatment room this season, no one has been through the emotional torment suffered by Manuel Almunia.
Having been struck down with a debilitating stomach virus in mid-September, the 32-year-old goalkeeper was then told his mother-in-law had been killed in a car crash in Spain.
Almunia's wife, Ana, was devastated and, as the virus receded, the family slowly came to terms with their loss.
Aside from the Carling Cup, the Spaniard missed eight matches but spent three of those on the bench as rumours spread that manager Arsene Wenger was losing faith in his No1.
But Almunia today revealed he kept close counsel throughout a traumatic period in his life and returned to the side only when he felt ready to focus fully on football once again.
"It was a difficult period and I had a few problems," Almunia said. "I didn't feel well at the start of the season and with everything together it made a very bad mix for me.
"Every footballer has at least one period in their career when things don't go very well and this was mine.
"I wasn't fully recovered mentally but I wanted to be in the squad and get involved with them. I wanted to be around the dressing room and feel the taste of football to get my mind back on the game because what happened was horrible.
"But now, I have confidence and Manuel is back. I feel so happy to be in the team and helping everyone."
Rivalry between goalkeepers is nothing new but Almunia was made to suffer by his then rival for the No1 jersey after joining Arsenal from Celta Vigo on a free in July 2004.
Having been plucked from obscurity in classic Wenger fashion - Celta had loaned him out for the two previous seasons to SD Eibar and Recreativo Huelva - suddenly he was pitched into battle against the volatile Jens Lehmann. The German made life increasingly difficult for Almunia the closer he got to usurping him in the first team, launching both public and private attacks, before eventually departing the club in May 2008.
Any enmity with Vito Mannone and Lukasz Fabianski, both of whom witnessed the worst Lehmann had to offer, pails by comparison.
"You have to have respect between goalkeepers," Almunia said. "Maybe Vito, Lukasz and I are not tight friends but we respect each other. They are lovely guys and I have been in Arsenal many years and known difficult periods but now the atmosphere is good.
"Any worker doesn't like to go into the office knowing that the guy next to you is talking about you negatively. I didn't like the character of Jens but I learned a lot from him.
"I learned that in football there are not many friends. You have to worry about yourself first because if someone can take your place, they will do it straight away. There is competition not only among teams but of players in the same team. Everybody is fighting for his place and you have to focus on your performance all the time."
Such competition can easily spill over into animosity and stories of dressing room unrest dogged the Gunners for much of last season.
Emmanuel Adebayor and, to a lesser extent, Kolo Toure were identified as the troublemakers in chief and their departure to Manchester City appears to have coincided with the restoration of harmony that provided the backdrop to Arsenal's fine start to the season.
"It is a happy dressing room when results are good but it is even happier when you don't have problems inside," Almunia said.
"There are no black points in the dressing room. Now everybody is free to speak with each other and have relationships with all the players."
Sunday sees the visit of Chelsea and Arsenal must find a way of beating the Premier League leaders without injured top scorer Robin van Persie.
Despite the Dutchman's absence, the feeling throughout the Arsenal squad is more positive than it was before the Blues' last trip to Emirates, when they emerged with a 4-1 victory just days after the Gunners had exited the Champions League after being beaten by Manchester United.
"I remember that game; I didn't play because I was injured but the atmosphere in the team was not very good," Almunia said. "We had nothing to fight for. Unconsciously, the players dropped a bit in their performance but Sunday will be so much different.
"Robin has been our best player until now and he is so unlucky. In terms of bad luck, it is a disgrace to get a long-term injury like Robin's. It is the biggest loss we could have had but we have no time to cry."
So charity may not be forthcoming on the pitch but off it the first-team players will be donating a day's wages as part of the 'Be a Gooner, Be A Giver' campaign, which aims to raise £500,000 for the club's chosen charity, Great Ormond Street Hospital.
The financial support is being used to help build a Lung Function Unit for children. "It is great what we are doing with the hospital but I hope we can help more people," said Almunia, who was at the launch of the project in August.
Arsenal v Chelsea is the Gunners' dedicated matchday to Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity, Arsenal's Charity of the Season. Players and Directors are donating a day's wages to the season-long partnership and supporters are encouraged to donate what they can too via www.beagoonerbeagiver.org . Alternatively, donate £2 by texting GOSH to 63320.*
*Texts cost £2 plus your standard network rate. £1.25 will go to Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity. For terms and conditions go to www.beagoonerbeagiver.org
