Soccer:Arsene Wenger commended "faultless" stand-in goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski after the often-criticised Pole helped Arsenal record their first European away win in a year as they beat 10-man Partizan Belgrade 3-1 in Serbia to maintain a 100 per cent start in Champions League Group H.
After surviving a power failure which forced the team to change in the dark and an intense atmosphere during the opening exchanges, the Gunners, who had six changes from the side beaten by West Brom at home on Saturday, went ahead on 15 minutes through Andrey Arshavin.
However, after wasting several more chances, the visitors were made to pay when Brazil-born striker Cleo levelled from the penalty spot after a handball by Denilson.
Partizan then had Marko Jovanovic sent off for hauling down Marouane Chamakh on 55 minutes, but Arshavin missed his penalty. However, Moroccan striker Chamakh and Sebastien Squillaci gave Arsenal a two-goal cushion heading into the closing minutes.
It could, though, have been a tense finish but for the intervention of Fabianski - deputising for the injured Manuel Almunia - as the Poland international first saved a penalty from Cleo and then capped a confident display with another acrobatic stop from Ivica Iliev in stoppage time.
Wenger has long championed Fabianski's cause, despite a number of blunders, and felt tonight's display proved his faith justified.
"Fabianski had a good game, we have seen the player tonight who we see in training. He had a faultless game," said the Arsenal boss. "I know it is in him. He got it out in the game tonight and hopefully that will give him the belief and confidence he needs."
"I am confident he will come out as a great 'keeper, I have always said that," the Gunners boss added. "We have to keep confidence in him and he needs to gain experience from games like this."
Fabianski could be in line to play against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
"At the moment Almunia is injured, we will have to see how his injury goes, but at the moment it is too early to say."
Wenger felt his side, missing key men like captain Cesc Fabregas, Theo Walcott, Robin van Persie and Thomas Vermaelen, coped well with the early onslaught.
"Partizan gave us the game we expected - full of commitment, full of power on every break," he said.
"We had a lot of the ball and created a lot of chances.
"However, we could not kill the game off and then we were always under threat.
"They came back with the penalty, afterwards we needed to keep the pace high and when we got the second goal, I thought we looked comfortable."
Wenger added: "For us it was important to win straight away after a big disappointment against West Brom.
"It puts us in a good position confidence-wise, Sunday is a big, big game for us.
"I believe we will go there with a desire to do extremely well."