Gallas, 30, lost his cool during the dramatic end to last week's Barclays Premier League match at Birmingham, where the Gunners saw striker Eduardo suffer a broken leg and then watched the home side snatch a last-gasp equaliser from the penalty spot.

Former Chelsea defender Gallas, who was handed the captain's armband following the departure of Thierry Henry in the summer, walked down the other end of the pitch following the controversial decision by referee Mike Dean - before then lashing out at an advertising hoarding and even bursting into tears following the final whistle as he sat inconsolable in the centre-circle.

There have even been reports some senior Arsenal players had to calm their skipper down in the dressing room as Gallas continued his emotional response to what had been a difficult afternoon.

However, Wenger intends to draw a line under the matter, as his squad focus on tomorrow's game against Aston Villa and then the Champions League trip to AC Milan next week.

"Gallas' leadership qualities for me are outstanding, even if on that occasion he used his commitment in the wrong way," said Wenger, who insisted any team discussions about the incident would be kept "internal".

The Arsenal boss continued: "Ideally he should not have responded like that - but it was not to blame anybody at all. He is a guy who is highly committed and sometimes when he goes overboard he can respond like that. He is an explosive one.

"We are a team who is the most consistent in the league and, as well because we are young we don't know exactly how to behave to look really good - but we are also maybe more genuine.

"William is not young - but he has the commitment of a very young boy, believe me, and you want people in this job who care.

"What I hate the most are people who are always 'nicey nice' and behave well, but at the end of the day they cheat a little bit with their commitment.

"I prefer sometimes a guy who goes overboard without hurting anybody who cares about winning. That is William, he cares about winning."

Wenger's initial harsh stance on Blues defender Martin Taylor - whom he had declared should be "banned for life" - has softened on reflection, claiming the player has since been given the "benefit of the doubt".

The Arsenal boss noted: "I said what I said in the heat of the moment, I took responsibility to retract what I said.

"I had a chat with Martin Taylor after the game.

"Frankly the tackle looks bad. It looks really bad.

"However, he told me he did not do it intentionally, so I gave him the benefit of the doubt and I retracted what I said because I am not 100% sure.

"Only he knows, so I do not want him to be singled out if he is genuine.

"But people who make death threats have to feel responsible for what they do. It is idiotic and not accepted - but I do not want to be responsible for that."

The prognosis on Croatia striker Eduardo - who will miss the European Championships this summer - is now more positive than the horrific images of the incident had suggested.

Wenger said: "He is as good as you can be after surgery. The first signs are good.

"The problems like infections have not been a difficulty.

"But we need to be patient. Patience is needed as much as support.

"We will all use our energy to give him that needed support.

"He is a brave boy, very hard-working and a sensational attitude.

"That gives you a lot of hope he can come back earlier. But we count nine (months). If it's earlier than that we'll be very happy."

Wenger now hopes all focus can be back on football, with Arsenal hosting Aston Villa tomorrow as they look to maintain their lead over Manchester United at the top of the table.

"I believe personally that overall we don't know how to feel. We are not in a club where hate is part of the culture," he said.

"We want to get the good things out of the game. We are focused on the magnificent sides of our club.

"We need to support Eduardo and focus on what we need to achieve until the end of the season.

"The rest is not our problem."