Van Persie leapt high to meet Emmanuel Eboue's right-wing cross with a spectacular first-time volley from just outside the area, the shot arrowing past Scott Carson's outstretched fingertips and into the top corner.

"Nobody expected it," Wenger said. "When the ball came over I thought we didn't have anyone in the box and then suddenly van Persie came in at full pace and power.

"I though it was going to go over the bar but the technique was perfect. It was the goal of a lifetime and definitely one of the best I have seen since I took charge at Arsenal.

"I don't know whether it is the best - I have seen some good ones since I came but it is certainly in the top five. It was unbelievable."

Even Iain Dowie, the new Charlton manager, could not hide his admiration.

The Ulsterman had high hopes after Darren Bent converted Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink's 21st-minute cross to put the hosts ahead, but van Persie's brilliance condemned him to a sixth league defeat in seven games.

"On another day you would have liked to have been at home applauding it," he said. "It was absolutely supreme technique."

It was the crowning glory of an exceptional individual performance by van Persie, although the 23-year-old showed the darker side to his game mid-way through the first half.

He must have feared the worst when his rash kick at Hasselbaink in the 28th minute alerted the attention of the referee Mark Clattenburg. The official consulted at length with his assistant before deciding to award the former Feyenoord forward a yellow card.

Moments later Van Persie made the most of his good fortune by drilling in a deserved equaliser from 15 yards after being picked out by the impressive Aleksandr Hleb.

"I did think about taking him off," Wenger admitted. "I wanted to see how he reacted to the incident but I decided to keep him on. If he had been sent off after that I would have been called stupid but as it was he went on to score two goals and he played very well. It just goes to show you need a bit of luck sometimes.

"My team is very hungry. To come here, to be 1-0 down and then win tells you a lot about the desire of this group. We have maintained the momentum, with five games on the trot, and we are very confident."