Arsenal lose Gallas to hamstring problem

William Gallas and Mikaël Silvestre have been ruled out for up to three weeks through injury, the Arsenal manager, Arsène Wenger, has revealed. Wenger said that he expected Kolo Touré to return from a groin problem for tomorrow's game against Bolton, but that Gallas had joined Silvestre on the sidelines with a hamstring problem.

"Kolo and Denilson will be back available," Wenger said. "However, we have lost William Gallas with a hamstring problem. We lost Silvestre, too, with a thigh problem last week as well. So we have lost two players from the game on Saturday, but we have gained two back. I think Gallas and Silvestre will be out for three weeks."

Gallas was stripped of the armband earlier this season when he questioned his team-mates' heart for the fight. Wenger, though, believes Gallas has come out of the situation with a renewed determination. And the striker Emmanuel Adebayor feels his colleague probably had a point. "There is some truth in what he said," noted the Togo striker, who was this week named African Player of the Year at an awards ceremony in Abu Dhabi. "Someone had to say these things. If he had said nothing, where would we be? Gallas has always been like that – he has experience, he has won titles, played in a World Cup final. He doesn't throw these thoughts around lightly. He is indispensable. He is Arsenal's rock – his behaviour since the armband was taken off him proves that."

Adebayor maintains the Gunners are still very much fighting for honours. "It's a question of confidence," the striker said. "At the moment, when we take the lead, we are scared. We tremble until the final whistle because the team is young and we have conceded goals in the last few minutes of matches. Perhaps we will perform better towards the end."