Fate has dealt Arsenal a cruel hand, with the loss to injury of Gaël Clichy, their first-choice left back, for up to two months, but could it have dealt a royal flush to Fabio Capello, the England manager?

Capello will need cover at left back for the World Cup finals in South Africa next year. Ashley Cole is the incumbent and a dead cert to travel, with Wayne Bridge a solid if unspectacular deputy. But who then?

If the cupboard appears bare, step forward Kieran Gibbs, the England Under-21 player who is already being tipped for great things by those in the know.

Mistakes can haunt a young player, especially if committed at the highest level. They hang around, gnawing away at the self-confidence. Gibbs could hardly have committed his error at a higher level, the second leg of the Champions League semi-final against Manchester United last season.

The world looked on at the Emirates Stadium — or it must have felt like it to the Lambeth-born former Wimbledon academy player — as Gibbs slipped over after only eight minutes. It was a slip, not a basic flaw in technique or lack of bravado, but the result was catastrophic and, to this day, recalled with horror by Arsenal fans.

United had led 1-0 from the first leg at Old Trafford and Gibbs’s fall from grace allowed Park Ji Sung to make it 2-0 on aggregate, effectively killing the tie. Gibbs was replaced at half-time, Arsène Wenger perhaps sparing him further ignominy, and United sailed on to the final.

The Arsenal manager has forgiven him. “After that he played and he played well,” Wenger said. “So, for me, it is forgotten.” The Arsenal tyro has bided his time, with only four appearances this season and a fifth last night. Back in the Champions League, too; back at the same venue. Were there any ghosts lurking?

Not that it appeared so. Gibbs, 20, strolled as if to the North London manor born, helped by not having the most physical of opponents, Moussa Dembélé, to mark. Dembélé, the Alkmaar forward, rarely raised a gallop, allowing Gibbs to relax a tad. But just when Gibbs thought he might have cracked it, Dembélé scurried past him, drove to the byline and prepared to cross.

The youngster’s defensive qualities swiftly rose to the fore, a fierce yet perfectly timed tackle blocking the attempted centre. Had he mistimed his challenge, it would have been a penalty.

It is, though, Gibbs’s spring-heeled forays along the left flank that Wenger appreciates most. The Frenchman loves his players to attack from all areas and Gibbs did just that, providing frequent support for Andrey Arshavin. An early thrust to the Alkmaar byline seemed promising, but his cross carried too little precision.

He got better. He dispossessed Dembélé with a crunching tackle and almost casually released William Gallas; he created space on the overlap, which Cesc Fàbregas chose to ignore. Just as well. As Gibbs was left in splendid isolation, albeit the job having been done by his luring away of defenders, Fàbregas drilled Arsenal ahead.

Late on, the former left winger ventured forward to fire a 20-yard effort narrowly wide. Gibbs still needs to concentrate more because, at times, he can be pulled out of position, overenthusiastically chasing an opponent.

Alkmaar, so devoid of ideas, could not take advantage of his occasional wanderings. But they are minor criticisms. Gibbs is a work in progress and he has about two months to pin down a first-team place as Clichy recuperates. A ticket in first-class alongside Cole and Bridge next summer, bound for Johannesburg, is not unimaginable.