Gallas gives Wenger something special

Arsene Wenger hailed the resilience of his Arsenal side and "special" captain William Gallas as the Gunners extended their lead at the top of the table after seeing off a determined Wigan with two late goals in the 2-0 win at the Emirates Stadium.

Gallas struck with a header seven minutes from time, before Tomas Rosicky finished a fine move two minutes later to make sure of a second straight league win which made the most of Manchester United's surprise defeat at Bolton.

Wenger said: "Wigan played well defensively. We needed something special and some patience to find an opening, and Gallas found it. He is a forgotten centre-forward because he knows where to be in the box and he can always turn up with a goal when you need it."

He added: "Once again we found the resources to win the game. It is not the first time, so I do not feel it is a coincidence."

With the likes of Cesc Fabregas and Mathieu Flamini unavailable, Wenger used the opportunity to test the depth of his squad and handed Theo Walcott a rare start ahead of Croatia striker Eduardo da Silva.

However, the England teenager was carried off 11 minutes from time after collapsing following a hefty challenge from behind by Emile Heskey.

Wenger, though, revealed there was no serious damage, with the player later seen walking comfortably out of the stadium.

"Theo does not look bad," said the Arsenal manager. "The physio told me he had to come off straight away because he was numb as he had been kicked on the nerve."

"He twisted his ankle and we checked on a X-ray, and he looks all right."