He's Wright behind you, Mr Seaman

"Richard Wright, Wright, Wright" was the chorus that echoed from Highbury's North Bank, in the persistent manner that its occupants used to hail his ubiquitous namesake, the former striker-turned TV presenter, Ian.

The rather more modest Richard Wright had authenticated his provisional membership (one recalls a similar reception initially for Alex Manninger) of Highbury Heroes with a crucial " lucky guess" of a penalty save against Panathinaikos in his side's 2-1 Champions' League victory.

You suspect, though, that the still highly able David Seaman will not be abdicating just yet, despite reports that he will succeed Bob Wilson as Arsenal goalkeeping coach at the end of the season – not when the World Cup is less than eight months away.

Which ensures that these are competitive times as the pair do battle for the gloves. Wright will want to pursue a claim for one of the three England goalkeeping places in Japan and Korea, but the £6m summer acquisition from Ipswich appreciates that he will not be able to register that interest without regular club appearances. Not a simple matter, when Seaman clings to that role like a limpet to a dockside.

The Arsenal manager, Arsène Wenger, speaks in those oh-so-diplomatic tones of his about having "two number ones", when asked what would happen when Seaman fully recovers from a shoulder injury. "I will have to make a decision at the time. But David Seaman is still number one in England. Richard Wright will be a number one," he says.

The frustration for anyone attempting to usurp Seaman is that his decline is far more gradual than most would have suspected. At 38, the pony-tailed one is beginning to betray evidence of wear but, in international terms, he remains the best of a competent, if not absolutely world-class, group of England goalkeepers.

If electing one keeper from two excellent candidates presents a specific problem for Wenger, his Old Trafford counterpart Sir Alex Ferguson is faced with an altogether more complex issue. How the Manchester United manager would relish a Seaman and Wright dilemma rather than having to accommodate a world-class keeper who, at times, does a passable imitation of a Sunday morning park goalie.

Fabien Barthez apologists, including the Manchester United manager himself, have campaigned forcibly but scarcely convincingly for their man in the aftermath of the débâcle against Deportivo La Coruña.

True, he is an excellent, instinctive shot-stopper, blessed with lightning reactions and fine footwork, but a major part of the art since the abolition of the back-pass has been communication with the rearguard. Even before Wednesday night, the Frenchman has never appeared to inspire confidence in that regard and, arguably, the understanding between goalkeeper and defence has deteriorated since the departure of Jaap Stam.

Though certain pundits have pontificated that it is simply a question of Ferguson having a word and emphasising to the Frenchman that theatrics should play less a part in his repertoire, members of that particular profession (look no further than Bruce Grobbelaar) tend to find it difficult to eradicate such idiosyncrasies.

Even more frustratingly for Ferguson is the awareness that one of his best purchases, Peter Schmeichel, who had apparently "retired" when he departed Old Trafford, is now responsible, at least in part, for the renaissance at Villa Park.

It also scarcely seems fair to mention that Mark Bosnich, the man he discarded, performed with distinction for Chelsea on his debut despite the London side's 2-0 defeat by Hapoel Tel Aviv on Thursday. And in a week when goalkeeper prowess was to the fore – his own the exception – the Ipswich goalkeeper Matteo Sereni was also his club's saviour the same night against Helsinborg.

However, Ferguson can dwell on his defensive frailties at least in the knowledge that United will have to produce real shockers in their final two group games (at home to Olympiakos and away to Lille) to deny themselves progress to the next stage.

Wenger can not be so certain. Victory against Real Mallorca at Highbury on Wednesday is essential. "I believe that this game is more important [than the one against Panathinaikos] because the rewards can be so huge for us," said the Arsenal manager, who accepts that his team were "a little bit fortunate to get six points from our two home games".

They may be fortunate in that Mallorca may not arrive in England with the best unity of spirit, following the 4-0 home defeat by Schalke and the resulting dismissal of their Austrian coach Bernd Krauss. Their visitors are also third from bottom of the Spanish league. Wenger will counsel heavily against assumptions about Mallorca.

"It's highly surprising, but if you look at Real Madrid they win every game in Europe but can't seem to win in their own league," Wenger said. "In the first game we could not put a lot of pressure on them because we only had 10 men [Ashley Cole, who is likely to miss the game through injury, having been sent off after 12 minutes], but they looked very comfortable against us."

Another night of strained nerves is promised, not least for the Arsenal goalkeeper. Whoever that may be.