Almunia also received a vote of confidence from team-mate Jose Reyes, whose own form has been under scrutiny after failing to score for two months. He answered the critics with Arsenal's opening goal last night.
"I think Manu is a good player with a lot of character," said Reyes, who came into the side after Fredrik Ljungberg was ruled out with a migraine.
"The manager must trust him a lot to bring him in. As for his mental strength, he is 28 and he has proved himself. Why wouldn't he be strong enough?"
But it is clear that Wenger faces a real dilemma for the Chelsea game as Arsenal try to close the five-point gap.
He said: "I will leave it until Sunday. I'm a great believer in Almunia's potential but, at the moment, he is playing under so much pressure that he has not really been himself."
