Jens Lehmann is facing at least two weeks on the sidelines with an Achilles injury.

The Arsenal goalkeeper, who has made a series of high-profile errors in the opening weeks of the season, aggravated an existing problem in Germany's 2-1 victory over England at Wembley.

Arsene Wenger will now be without his first-choice goalkeeper for Saturday's Premier League clash with leaders Manchester City.

Lehmann will also miss the second leg of the Gunners' Champions League qualifier against Sparta Prague at Emirates Stadium and the home clash with Portsmouth on September 2.

Wenger said: "Jens is out and he will miss two weeks, I think. Maybe more. I don't know.

"He is going to see a specialist in Germany. He had this injury before but it has got much worse."

The veteran shot-stopper gifted David Healy a quickfire opener in Arsenal's 2-1 win over Fulham on the opening weekend, and was again at fault as he allowed David Dunn's shot to slip through his hands in the draw at Blackburn.

Lehmann also looked shaky at times during the Wembley victory, but England failed to take advantage, with Michael Owen particularly culpable.

Wenger will now turn to Manuel Almunia in Lehmann's absence, with summer signing Lukasz Fabianski acting as back-up.

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Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger will convert Aliaksandre Helb back to his usual position on the flank when Emmanuel Adebayor returns to full fitness.

So far this season Robin van Persie has been deployed as a lone striker, and has at times looked isolated in that position.

Like Thierry Henry before him, van Persie finds it difficult to go it alone and plays to his strengths in the presence of support.

Perhaps recognizing this, Wenger has used Hleb to play through the middle for the first two games of the Premiership campaign and in Europe against Sparta Prague.

Although the Belarusian has done well, scoring twice and looking more dangerous than in previous seasons, the manager will revert back to a more structured 4-4-2 when striker Emmanuel Adebayor regains match fitness.

“Alex likes to play through the middle,” Wenger told Arsenal.com. “But I must say if you ask Steven Gerrard or Tomas Rosicky or any of these kinds of creative players then they all say they want to play there.

“However I cannot isolate Robin van Persie up there the whole year. It does not work on a longer period. It can work in some games but it cannot be the basis of your game. You need two strikers.”

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Eduardo played 63 minutes and set Croatia on their way to victory in an entertaining encounter with Balkan-rivals Bosnia on Wednesday. The Arsenal striker put his nation ahead 18 minutes with a header

Fran Merida played a full 90 minutes and scored as Spain progressed to the last 16 of the FIFA Under-17 World Cup with a 2-1 win over Syria. The classy Arsenal midfielder put the European Champions ahead on 56 minutes. Although Spain dominated, Merida’s effort was cancelled out when Solaiman Solaiman scored from the spot after Alex had handled in the area. But Daniel Aquino ensured Spain’s progression in injury-time when he finished off an excellent move started by Barcelona’s Bojan. For Spain, who defeated Honduras 4-2 in their opening fixture, a point against Argentina on Saturday will ensure they finish top of Group C.

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Arsene Wenger is refusing to let William Gallas be treated by France's team doctors.

The Arsenal manager is insisting that his own medical team take care of the defender, who has a groin problem, despite Raymond Domenech wanting Gallas to get treatment at the French HQ at Clairefontaine.

Wenger is concerned that the problem with Gallas's right adductor is a reoccurring one and he wants to make sure his captain is fully fit.

France are anxious to have Gallas available for their Euro 2008 qualifier with Italy next month.

Treatment

"I believe it is logical the Arsenal's players get treatment with the club's doctors," Wenger told L'Equipe.

"They are perfectly qualified."

Wenger admits he is 'cautious' about Gallas and the national team.

"If Gallas is fit he will play with the French team, but I am cautious.

"He is suffering a strained adductor muscle, the same injury he had last year, and that usually demands a 21-day break."

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Arsene Wenger could be about to finally agree a new deal "in the next week or so".

The Frenchman's future has been the subject of much speculation since the departure of Gunners vice-chairman David Dein.

His current deal with the north Londoners expires at the end of the current campaign.

But chairman Peter Hill-Wood has been quoted as saying: "Hopefully we'll have something to say in the next week or so.

"The length of the contract is up to him but hopefully it will be a two or three-year deal.

"We certainly want to pay him what he's worth. But money is not the major stumbling block - there are just little pieces here and there to sort out."

Reports claim that a new Gunners deal could net Wenger around £9 million.

Arsenal's GILBERTO SILVA discusses Thierry Henry's departure, the importance of Arsene Wenger and why he'd love to finish his career as a Gunner...

How did you feel when Arsene Wenger ordered you to have a three week holiday after the Copa America and begin the new season later than the others?

It was important for me to get some rest after a very hard season in England and the intensity of the Copa America. I'm glad Arsene thought so too, and I believe this holiday will help me to come back in good shape in order to help the team in the Premiership and the Champions League qualification.

How confident are you that your exertions in Venezuela won’t have a detrimental effect on your performances for Arsenal?

It's simple: more rest will give me more energy for the physical demands of the Premiership. It's not that we have a group full of newbies - a lot of the players know each other and I don't think my absence will make things difficult.

What do you think of the new Brazilian-born signing Eduardo?

Eduardo spent a long time unknown to a lot of Brazilians because he plied his trade in Croatia. I have not had had any significant chances to see him playing, but Eduardo would not have been signed by Arsenal if the manager and the club didn't think he was up to the job. Having said that, I find it a bit dangerous when people state that Eduardo has come to fill Henry's shoes - it is important that people give him time do adapt to the Premiership instead of drawing comparisons.

Did you speak to Eduardo about Arsenal before he signed or was his move a surprise to you?

I had never spoken to him before. As for the move, it was a surprise only because his name had not come up in transfer rumours, but the man was a prolific scorer in Croatia and should prove a valuable signing for us.

What is going to be the main difference on and off the pitch now that Henry and Ljungberg are no longer around at the Emirates?

I think that a strong group has been what kept us going in the last few years. As much as Henry and Ljungberg are great players and will be missed, we have to go on and not keep thinking of the past. We made that mistake for a while after Patrick Vieira left in 2005, but I reckon the players have learned that the show has to go on.

Was it the right decision to sell Henry at this time? Why?

It's not for me to say. Decisions of this kind involve major club and personal decisions and you just shouldn't question them. I wish Thierry the best for his career. He's gone and we have to deal with it.

Were Henry's frustrations causing morale to be affected within the squad – or do you feel that might have happened if he'd stayed longer?

It would be a bit silly to speculate about "ifs and maybes". Thierry wasn't the only player unhappy with our problems last year and I don't think his dissatisfaction was any problem for the squad in terms of morale.

Freddie said Arsenal are lacking ambition. What do you think? Would you like to see a huge name player sign for Arsenal this season?

There is no lack of ambition at this club, that's for sure. The players are willing to repay Arsene's vote of confidence with a lot of effort on and off the pitch. It's easy to accuse the club, but we all know Arsenal has dealt with the situation of a new stadium and the subsequent squeeze in money. On the other hand, I do believe we have a quality group that's ready to show its value for fans and critics.

Wenger has said that Van Persie will blossom and become as important to the team as Henry was – can you ever see that happening?

Robbie had already shown a huge progress before injuring himself last season, and I can only believe he will be looking forward to assume more responsibilities now. He is already an important player for Arsenal because we missed him in a lot of games last season, so I am happy he is back to fitness.

Wenger's future has been the subject of much speculation. Do you feel certain he will stay with Arsenal? Why?

A lot has been said about it, but what I can say is that Arsene Wenger is the symbol of Arsenal and perhaps the most important figure at the club now. All the players would love him to stay for as long as possible.

What can this Arsenal team realistically achieve this season?

The first objective is to the start the Premiership well and to qualify for the Champions League main draw. I have faith in our team, especially as the younger players have already got some experience. If we get some momentum going, we are going to be a tough side against any team.

What do you say to those people predicting that Spurs will be better than Arsenal this season? Is that a joke?!

Let's wait until the end of the season and then talk about it. I have the feeling it's a bit too early to make such an ambitious prediction. They have signed a lot of players and certainly have improved in the last few seasons, but there is a long season ahead all of us.

Will you finish your career at Arsenal if they give you the chance?

Why not? This is the club that gave me my first chance to play club football outside Brazil and I have been really happy in London. Had great times winning titles and even played in a European Cup final. If the chance comes, it would be extremely honourable to finish my career as a Gunner.

About 10 days ago, Arsenal were being written off as the fall guys of the top four.

The critics said Arsène Wenger had lost Thierry Henry and Freddie Ljungberg over the summer and brought in untested, if talented, replacements. Having finished fourth in the past two seasons and competed in the Champions League for a decade, their status was under serious threat by emerging, big-spending teams below.

The manager admitted his side were motivated by that assessment. But, despite a heartening start to the campaign, he stresses it will not be enough to sustain them until May.

“They were certainly not pleased by that [criticism],” said the manager. “But as much as we have been written off we are not up there again yet. We have not played many games.

“You always have your pride and you want to give a response to people who don’t believe in you. But the real strength has to come from inside the team with the values we have to be faithful to, the football we want to play and the trust we have to put in each other.

“That must be stronger than just a response to outside adversity because if it stops coming then we have nowhere to go. We need something stronger to rely on. That always has to be our ambitions and the values we want to have inside our squad.”

Arsenal may be signing Palacios. That’s “Palacios“, not Palacio - that previous fêted but ill-fated transfer rumour.

Wilson Palacios, a 23-year-old winger, has been on trial for almost a week and will find out today or tomorrow whether or not he has done enough for Arsene Wenger to keep him permanently.

Palacios, who plays for Honduran team Deportive Olimpia, has previously had trials at Red Star Belgrade and Monaco, which reportedly fell through over “enconomic differences” and Palacios’ non-EU status respectively. However, the player’s father is confident about his chances of earning a move:

“He called us Monday afternoon, which alleviated our concerns, but it’s good news. He passed the medical examinations well. He’s already been in London five days, and if he’s made the right impression, he will remain there. We haven’t yet discussed the economic aspects - they are not important to us - what matters is that my son remains playing in England.”

Palacios began his career as a right-back, but his attacking instincts have seen him shunted forward into a wing role. He’s got a hell of a shot on him, as this video demonstrates - go to 1:05 in (or 38 seconds from the end) to see the goal hailed in Honduras as the best of all time.

Reports suggest that we would be prepared to pay £2m for Palacios’ services.

Of course, this could all be smoke without fire. Smoke from a cigarette, perchance. But there are some fairly reliable local sources (ie. ones that don’t quote The Sun) backing it up. It would hardly be a superstar signing, but with just over a week remaining in the transfer window, it might be all we can look forward to.

UPDATE: The Sporting Director of Palacio’s club, Osman Madrid, has spoken about the player’s potential move:

“The agreement with Arsenal is practically a fact - there is a big possibility, though it is not yet certain if the player will go on loan to English soccer.”

Whether that means it is not certain whether the player will move on loan or permanently, or on loan or not at all, I have no idea.

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Check this vid, it's really funny. Great team spirit though!

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