"I was brought up with those standards, with that approach to life. That has helped me through this difficult period. I looked on it as a challenge. I just worked harder to get back."
That approach paid dividends for the 35-year-old after Spaniard Manuel Almunia, who had claimed his jersey, made one mistake too many against Manchester United in Arsenal's 4-2 defeat at Highbury.
The German was recalled for the 3-1 victory at Aston Villa on Saturday - a result that delighted Lehmann, who is in Dusseldorf for Germany's friendly against Argentina tonight.
"Naturally, I was happy to be back," said Lehmann. "Everybody wants to play and, because of the result, it was a successful comeback. But while I was out, no, my selfconfidence was not affected. I have always been self-confident.
"Maybe it is my mentality because all the time I strive to be the best. That goes back to my upbringing - if you want to be successful you HAVE to work hard."
Lehmann then recalled the day that he was dropped by Wenger. "I was surprised when he took me out of the team," said the goalkeeper. "But I am a professional and I cannot afford to take it personally. He is the boss and every player has to respect his decision.
"But I want my future to be at Arsenal and when he asked me if I planned to leave during the transfer window in January, I told him no, that I intended to stay. I brought my family over here for three years, not 18 months. They like London, as I do, and I love the club. I intend to stay."
Another man happy that Lehmann is back in favour at Highbury, is Germany manager Jurgen Klinsmann, who has shown his faith by picking Lehmann to start ahead of his great rival Oliver Kahn tonight. Klinsmann said: "Form will play its part but I'm going to rotate the goalkeepers through 2005 - so it's now Lehmann's turn."
Assuming Lehmann keeps his place at Arsenal, his rivalry with Kahn will be highlighted later this month when the Gunners face Kahn's Bayern Munich in the Champions League - a match-up that will generate huge newspaper interest.
"The media are certainly happy I was back on Saturday," said Lehmann. "There is a lot of stuff for the papers to write now. They call it 'The War of the Goalkeepers' but I can honestly say the relationship between myself and Oliver Kahn is miles away from this. We work together in training and sometimes we laugh about what is written.
"The truth is we are both members of the national squad and in that squad there has to be a spirit, everyone has to be responsible. You cannot afford private arguments. We have the World Cup in Germany next year so this is very important preparation time. The team is all that is important, not individuals."
And Lehmann remains confident that Arsenal can still taste success this season despite the lapse in form that has left them 11 points behind Chelsea in the Premiership.
"Of course we can achieve things," he said. "It is only February and we are involved in three big competitions - the Premiership, the Champions League and the FA Cup.
"We were hit by some disappointing injuries but we have the mentality of winners, we can always come back - especially when no one expects it."
