Right, been meaning to run this for a while now, and as time is running out for contributions, it’s pull my finger out time. There have been a few characters in Arsenal’s rich history, to say the least. One who will always be remembered by those fortunate enough to have witnessed the man in action will be Jens Lehmann. Without further ado, I am going to hand over to the people organising this particular tribute to our former shotstopper come lunatic. It’s been translated into English, but I trust is understandable as I don’t really want to change their words…

So what is this about?
We would like to compile your works into a book for Jens Lehmann. In other words, you create one page for the book (how exactly this will work read below) and we put together a book with your entries, have it printed professionally and will present it to Jens Lehmann as a gift at the end of his last season.

Deadline for sending in your entries is March 31th 2010!

Who can participate?
Everybody of course! No matter if you are a little lad from the North Pole or a 100-year old football fan from Germany. Jens Lehmann has fans all over the world and the more international and diverse the book turns out, the better.

What will the book look like?
The book will be in A4 format (29.7 cm x 21 cm), it will be printed on high-quality, heavy stock paper and bound in hardcover. Cover and content that will not be created by you will be professionally designed. Page count depends on the number of your entries. There will be exactly one book printed.

What can I contribute to the book?
There are pretty much no limits. Write something (maybe some goodbye letter, about a dear football memory related to Jens Lehmann, a story, a poem etc), drawings, collages, photos, even a little handicraft work, a DVD or something you sewed, as long as it is flat enough to be integrated into the book.

In which language should I write?
German and/or English. It doesn’t matter if your German or English is not perfect! Whatever you can manage (if you mind we can still beta read your entry of course. I know my English is not perfect but we've got native speakers of both languages who can check your texts).

What do I need to pay special attention to?
Everybody will get one A4 page of the book. Please take care that your entry does not exceed these measurements. If you want to write by hand, please try to write legible. You know how handwriting can be hard to make out sometimes. That does not count for little children who of course may write as scrawly as they like. ;0)

May I sign with my real name?
That is entirely up to you. Full name, first name, nickname or anonymous..

How do I send my entry to you?
You will need to email it to [email protected]

There are three ways your entry will end up in the book:

a) You scan your entry yourself and send it to the e-mail address above or you’ll send your entry by post and the designer will scan it for you.

b) If you are not that creative and have “only” got text, for example a poem about insane goalkeepers without any particular layout you can send the text directly by e-mail as well. Your text will then be adjusted to the design of the book and nicely arranged as the designer sees fit or you can make a design suggestion yourself that will then be realised by the designer. This shouldn’t be too time-consuming but just one example: you wrote something and would like an image of, say, the goal next to it or one of your own photos? That can be done.

c) You would like your original page in the book? Then please send it by post (important: use an A4 envelope – maybe putting in some board so that the page does not get bent) and we will leave a blank page in the book when printing where your entry will be inserted. Or you would like a printed page but with your original drawing, photo, crafty whatever, DVD, sewed thingamabob? No problem either. Send it by post and we will add the original to the printed page layout. Please ask us directly by e-mail if you would like a solution like that.

How do I submit my entry by post?
Just drop an enquiry to the e-mail address above and you will receive the mail address to which you can send your entry.

Will I have to pay for anything?
Nope, apart from what you spend for making your entry and maybe shipping costs, not a penny. We will however have expenses for printing and maybe travel costs (for the person who will present the book to Lehmann) so any contributions would be more than welcome. If you would like to support us, you can make a little donation to our Paypal account: [email protected]

Every cent not used for the printing of the book or additional expenses related to this project will be donated to the childcare charity organisation Powerchild Campus to which Lehmann acts as ambassador as well! Powerchild Campus supports children and families affected by HIV in South Africa and builds meeting places for families with a soup kitchen, medical care centre and football training grounds. So your contribution will be used for a good cause in any way. Details of Jens’ involvement and the charity itself can be seen here

What kind of entries will you reject?
Everything insulting and obscene, naturally. Please keep in mind that Jens Lehmann will actually get to see and read your entry and that his family might have a look as well. Love letters are all fine but please don’t write anything that you wouldn’t be comfortable with all the Lehmanns seeing and reading. Meaningless one-liners also won’t end up in the book.

Ed's note - So there you have it. You have until the end of Wednesday next week to get your contributions in. If you are sending something in the post, just let them know if you think it might not get there in time, and I reckon they will hold a page for you. Get cracking! Might do something myself over the weekend which I'll also put on the site

By the way, if your German is half decent, the website of the good people putting together the book is www.jens-lehmann-fanpage.de. And if you want to see what the great man’s been up to in the Bundesliga, there’s a great youtube video of him in action for Stuttgart last season. If this doesn’t inspire you to pay your own tribute, I don’t know what will!