Arsene Wenger admits he is surprised at how quickly Thomas Vermaelen has settled in to his Arsenal defence.
The Belgian international, who reportedly cost the Gunners £10million when he was signed from Ajax in the summer, made a scoring debut last Saturday in the 6-1 win over Everton at Goodison Park.
Vermaelen, 23, was again impressive in Tuesday's 2-0 Champions League play-off win over Celtic at Parkhead which puts the Gunners well on the way to the group stages ahead of the second leg at the Emirates.
The Arsenal boss said: "Yes, I am surprised but we saw that he had the physical strength and mentality to cope and when he was needed he came in.
"I believe he has a good mix of the physical and technical for a centre-back and it is interesting to have a left-footed player because he gives you angles for the pass which are very important for the midfielder."
Source: Eurosport