Mikael Silvestre hopes to establish a solid defensive pairing with Arsenal captain William Gallas.

"I think that everyone understands my choice," said Silvestre, who was deprived of first-team opportunities at Manchester United last season. "I had a few offers to return to France, but when Arsenal came along I knew it was the best challenge I could have asked for.<> "It was a bit strange. Being a foreigner, when you sign for a club you know it's going to be for a finite period and you don't expect to stay for as long as nine years. But when it's time to leave you realise it's the end of a chapter and you now begin a new one."

Silvestre stands to play more centrally against Dynamo Kiev - although Arsene Wenger also intends to use him as cover on the left for Gael Clichy - and he admitted that a partnership with Gallas was enticing: "We're quite similar players and it's easier to play with someone you know well."