Jens Lehmann was the unlikely hero from the penalty spot as Arsenal beat Real Madrid Legends 5-3 in a shoot-out at the Emirates after a 0-0 draw. But another former Gunners idol, David Seaman was down on the official teamsheet to play. Read on to find out why Safe Hands didn’t feature in the match.

Seaman, who lifted the European Cup Winners Cup under George Graham in 1994 while reaching the final a year later, is held in high esteem at the club – with many fans looking forward to seeing him turn the years back by appearing in goal once more on Saturday.

However the former England international was in the middle of his warm-up prior to kick-off when he felt a big twinge in his calf.

He explained to Arsenal.com: “I tried to carry on but it was twinging even more. There was no way that I could carry on, so I came in and let the physio have a look at it and he said, ‘You’re running a serious risk of really damaging it’, so I’m sorry, but I can’t take that risk.

“I’d just like to say sorry to the fans because I was really looking forward to playing here, especially against Real Madrid, but it’s not to be. It’s so sad but it’s still a great event.

“I’m 55 in 10 days so I’ve just got to start having a real good think about whether I should play or not. I was happily retired at 40, so now it might be time to do it again.”

Follow Arsenal reporter Layth on Twitter @laythy29