Thierry Henry is not the egocentric striker who left Arsenal behind

When Henry left Arsenal in 2007 he was almost bigger than the club, but Barcelona and New York have changed him

Thierry Henry can not only show his medals to the Arsenal dressing room, he can show his statue. The striker welled up at the unveiling of his bronze likeness at Emirates Stadium this month and it seemed unkind to wonder whether he had been commemorated before his time. But the feeling will gather strength if and when the 34-year-old completes a startling return to the club, and pulls on the red-and-white jersey in the new year. Reports on Thursday night suggested it will happen in the next two days.

It is doubtful that Arsène Wenger had considered re-signing Henry on a short-term loan from the New York Red Bulls when the sculptors received their commission as part of Arsenal's 125-year anniversary celebrations. The manager, incidentally, came over all self-conscious when a bust of himself was sited at the players' entrance to the stadium. "I thought I was dead when I saw it," he said. Yet the curious prospect of the return of a legend who is not only alive but still kicking beckons.

It feels risky. When Henry left Arsenal for Barcelona in 2007, after eight glorious seasons in north London, the joke was that he needed an additional business-class seat for his ego. He had almost transcended the club with his personality and status, and his departure was considered by some as necessary for the younger players to blossom. Henry had become such a focal point that his team-mates would feel compelled to seek the pass to him even when it was not on.

One story from his final season sticks in the memory. Arsenal had lost at Fulham at the end of November and Wenger had substituted Alex Song at half-time after the midfielder had endured a dreadful game. In front of the rest of the squad Henry castigated Song, which deeply upset Wenger. Henry was suffering from sciatica and Wenger told him that he was taking him out of the firing line, starting in the next game – the derby against Tottenham Hotspur. Henry left the training ground in a rage. Due to injury problems, he played only a further 10 times for the team.

Song, of course, remains at the club, together with a clutch of others who worked with Henry in the first-team squad – Manuel Almunia, Johan Djourou, Tomas Rosicky, Abou Diaby, Theo Walcott and Robin van Persie. What impact Henry would have on the chemistry of the match-day dressing room is the greatest intangible, particularly as he would most likely be a mere squad member, fighting with Park Chu-young for the right to understudy Van Persie.

The notion of Henry as a cheerleader on the bench does not sit easily with the memories of him in his va-va-voom pomp, when he was arguably the finest player in the country, an explosive package of pace, skill and ruthlessness who celebrated by sliding on his knees after putting opponents on theirs. Henry scored 15 times in 29 games for the Red Bulls last season but he is obviously no longer the same player. Nobody, least of all himself, would want him to sully his Arsenal legacy.

A section of the club's dressing room would be caught in two minds were Henry to return on a permanent, longer-term contract. Privately, one or two of them wonder why Ian Wright was not selected for the statue and there is the media circus that may accompany Henry. But the prospect of a quick fix appears to suit, with the positives vying for prominence. Wenger needs temporary cover for Marouane Chamakh and Gervinho, who are bound for the Africa Cup of Nations, and Henry may also offer an emotional lift.

He has been training hard and impressively with the squad during the MLS close-season and, as importantly, he has clicked with the key characters. Henry is a different person to the one who left Arsenal, having become less egocentric, possibly as a result of him not being the main man at Barcelona. In New York he has faded from the European consciousness.

Wenger's Arsenal squad is also different. Players such as Song and Van Persie have matured into leaders, there are international captains aplenty and the transfer deadline day signings have brought further worldliness. It is not a dressing room to cower before Henry.

Wenger has gone back to the future in the second half of the past two campaigns, giving Sol Campbell a short-term deal in January 2010 and signing Jens Lehmann towards the end of last season. Wenger might remember how Campbell, despite some difficulties, played like the defensive titan of old in the derby at Tottenham and how Lehmann made vital saves in the victory at Blackpool. There is the recognition within the squad that increased fire-power is required and if Henry could make a couple of decisive contributions, then he would be feted once again.

Henry has been back to Arsenal since his departure. He appeared as a substitute for Barcelona in the Champions League in March of last year and this past summer he played for the Red Bulls against Arsenal in the Emirates Cup. There had been a plan for him to swap sides and play for his former team in the second half but, to his disgust, it was vetoed by the referee.

"They have some stupid rules," Henry said. "I'm sure the fans would have loved that and I would have loved that." His dream may yet come true.

Source: David Hytner, The Guardian on 29 Dec 11

Own goal costs Arsenal

Arsenal were booed by their own fans after letting another lead slip to surrender the Emirates Cup to New York Red Bulls.

The response of the 60,000 inside the Emirates Stadium did not bode well for the new season, with the Gunners doing nothing to prove they had cured the frailties which caused their supporters so much suffering last term.

As in Saturday's 2-2 draw with Boca Juniors, who they had led 2-0, Arsenal were unable to close out a game they had dominated, with substitute Kyle Bartley putting through his own net six minutes from time resulting in a 1-1 draw.

That was after Robin van Persie had put the tournament hosts on course for a fourth Emirates Cup success out of five when he nodded home shortly before half-time.

While defensive errors cost the Gunners against Boca, this time it was their all-too-familiar wastefulness in front of goal as they missed numerous chances to kill the game.

Manager Arsene Wenger retained only four of the starting XI who played 24 hours earlier and was clearly not prepared to take any chances with the quartet, withdrawing Jack Wilshere after just seven minutes after the midfielder picked up an slight ankle knock.

The Red Bulls made just four changes from the side which surprised Paris St Germain. One of the them was Thierry Henry, who was treated to a hero's welcome on his return to the Emirates.

The Gunners' all-time top scorer took just seven minutes to make an impact, screwing a low shot wide.

Arsenal were in control otherwise, although they were guilty of their perennial crime of trying to walk the ball in when a Carlos Mendes tackle denied Aaron Ramsey.

Wilshere's replacement Benik Afobe had slotted in well on the right and almost had a goal to celebrate when he brought down Bacary Sagna's cross and forced a sprawling save from Frank Rost.

Moments later, Rost produced an even better stop one-on-one with Ramsey, who had been wrongly flagged offside anyway.

After Henry's free-kick forced an acrobatic save from Wojciech Szczesny, Ramsey missed a glorious chance to put Arsenal ahead, blazing over after superb trickery from Van Persie caused chaos in the visitors' box.

The penalty area also witnessed what appeared to be a dive from Gunners new boy Gervinho, who went down far too easily when Chris Albright slid in from behind after gifting the ball to the Ivorian.

The Emirates was virtually full but those inside suggested they were not getting their money's worth by starting a Mexican wave shortly before the break.

They were on their feet for the right reasons three minutes before half-time, Tomas Rosicky's straight free-kick flighted perfectly for Van Persie to nod home past a stranded Rost.

Gervinho should have made it 2-0 moments later, bursting onto Rosicky's through-ball but shooting too close to the goalkeeper.

Van Persie also wasted another chance immediately after the restart, electing to square the ball when he should have shot.

He was then denied an easy finish by a brilliant sliding interception by former Barcelona defender Rafael Marquez after brilliant skill down the left by Afobe.

Van Persie and Gervinho combined to force another stop from Rost before they were replaced by Marouane Chamakh and Carlos Vela for the final 25 minutes.

Arsenal's habit of tossing away leads had resurfaced on Saturday and they were almost caught on the break today when Henry sent a trademark sidefoot effort too close to Szczesny.

And after a swathe of substitutions, they failed to heed the warning as the Red Bulls snatched an unlikely draw.

Henry was the inspiration, threading in substitute Juan Agudelo, and Agudelo's cross was turned into his own net by Bartley.

Source: ESPN Soccernet on 31 Jul 11

Wenger's reaction to the Arsenal 1-1 New York Red Bulls match

on Thierry Henry’s return to Arsenal…
They say great clubs never die and it looks like great players never die. Thierry has shown us today that he is still top quality with his feet and with his head. With his head, I knew [he is still top quality], but with his feet I wasn’t sure. He still has good physical potential and has prepared exceptionally well for this game. I am very happy to have seen him today and he played a good game.

on Arsenal’s performance…
It was a bit frustrating that it was only forwards against defence. They played very deep and didn’t come out. But it’s part of the game. I felt we looked quite stable as long as we were not making any disturbances in our organisation. The final 20 minutes were a bit like yesterday, you could see the continuity in our game went. Overall, I am very happy with the two days because we were confronted with two teams who were very committed, very physical and very strong defensively. We were tested. On both days, we played very well for an hour. We have nothing more to offer at the moment. Hopefully that will change in the next two weeks.

on Jack Wilshere’s injury…
It is not very serious. They say he might be out for the whole of next week because he has an ankle inflammation. But he has not torn anything. He is a quick healer usually and a tough boy so I hope he will be quicker than the medical predictions. The England game is on August 10 and I don’t know [whether he will be available]. They told me he might be out next week. If he is out next week, he will not play against Benfica so he will certainly not play for England.

on the performance of Vermaelen and Koscielny….
I felt the two centre backs were very good, in my opinion, and played very well. I am quite happy with the performance of the centre backs. If you look at the goal we conceded today, I don’t think it comes from the centre backs.

on whether he will sign a central defender this summer…
We try to strengthen the squad. I have no name to offer today.

on competing with Chelsea, Man United and Man City…
They have huge resources, we know that. We know we have to compete with people who have more resources than us, I’ve spoken 50 times about that. But I cannot change that.

on what the result tells us…
I don’t think you can compare friendly games. They played in the final third today. We weren’t playing in the championship where you have to win games. It’s not the same. Today they just had to keep it tight at the back and wait for their chances. They did very well but when you go into your championship and you are expected to make the game, to take the initiative, it becomes a different game.

on whether Cesc will be back in training…
I have nothing to add on that. I spoke about Cesc yesterday.

on a surprise for Thierry…
The surprise was that we wanted to him to play in the last five minutes for us. He was desperate to do it, but the referees stubbornly turned it down. I went in to see the referee at half time to ask him to allow him to play for us but they told us that the rules are absolutely, adamantly against it because one given player cannot play for two teams in the same game. That was the surprise! It would have been before [he supplied the pass that led to the equaliser.]

on the prospect Ryo Miyaichi gets called into his Under-22 team…
We have now in football the Under-16, Under-17, Under-18, Under-19, Under-20, Under-21, Under-22… soon we will create the Under-60 and we’ll have to let the players go. I think at some stage the clubs should be within in their rights to use their players because these competitions are organised when the season is already started. I think we have to become serious.

Players under 20? You take our midfield from yesterday. Frimpong is 19, Ramsey is 20, and Wilshere is 19. They can now play in the World Cup Under-20, so we could be in a situation where we could lose our players and cannot even field our midfield. That’s where people inside the clubs raise questions about how we can continue to give a chance to young players if during the season they go away with the national teams.

on his plan for Miyaichi…
My plan is to get a work permit for him and to put him on the pitch for Arsenal Football Club.

Source: Arsenal.com on 31 Jul 11

31 July 2011: Arsenal 1-1 New York Red Bulls, Emirates Stadium

It took him a while but Thierry Henry has finally got his hands on a trophy at Emirates Stadium.

The Arsenal legend only spent a year at the Club’s new home before leaving for Barcelona in 2007 but he was back on Sunday in the colours of the New York Red Bulls to lift the Emirates Cup.

Robin van Persie’s first-half header seemed sufficient to keep the silverware in north London but a late own goal from the unfortunate Kyle Bartley scuppered home hopes as Arsenal paid for their profligacy.

Typically, Henry was the catalyst for the decisive goal and no one will begrudge him this moment of glory. The Frenchman received a rapturous reception on his return and, while his pace is not so frightening now, he retains the vision and eye for goal that made him the Club’s record goalscorer before his departure in 2007.

Indeed, only the agility of Wojciech Szczesny denied Henry a dream return: the Pole was at full stretch to push aside a trademark free kick.

Arsène Wenger, of course, will be more concerned about his team’s preparations for the new season. They look sharp enough but there was one scare when Jack Wilshere left the field to nurse a minor ankle injury.

For once the most notable name on the teamsheet was not an Arsenal player but, for the record, Wenger did make seven changes from the side that started Saturday’s 2-2 draw against Boca Juniors.

Szczesny, Bcary Sagna, Thomas Vermaelen, Tomas Rosicky, Aaron Ramsey, Alex Song and Kieran Gibbs all started as their manager fielded what looked suspiciously like the team that could start at Newcastle on August 13 – give or take a couple.

Henry provided a few glimpses of magic in the early stages – one cute backheel foxed Arsenal’s back four and an instant turn and shot had Szczesny scrambling to his right – but the hosts were soon into their stride.

Wilshere’s early departure furrowed a few brows but Rosicky dropped into midfield and pulled the strings alongside Ramsey while Benik Afobe got his first chance to impress the Emirates crowd. The teenager, back from a successful loan spell at Huddersfield, showed pace and persistence on his home debut.

The Red Bulls crowded the midfield, planting two men in front of their back four, so Arsenal looked to the flanks to do some damage. Gibbs got forward on the left but most of the early chances were sparked by Sagna.

Laurent Koscielny headed the right back’s cross high and wide after 15 minutes and another well-judged delivery was brought down by Afobe before goalkeeper Frank Rost came out to block.

Ramsey got into a scoring position moments later but tried to pick out Gervinho when he should have gone for goal, then Van Persie dummied past two markers before unleashing a shot that lacked his usual power.

It was all Arsenal by now and the Red Bulls were indebted to Rost for keeping their goal intact. He came out to smother after Ramsey was put clear by Van Persie – although an offside flag was raised – and Rosicky was the next to test Rost from the edge of the box.

The MLS side did venture forward to earn a free kick 20 yards out that Henry was never going to relinquish. He curled the ball towards the corner – as we’ve seen so many times – but Szczesny was equal to it. Some home fans were disappointed: ‘Let him score, let him score, let him score!’ they chanted.

Back down the other end Arsenal had two decent penalty shouts turned down: Van Persie was blocked off as he tried to get between two defenders and Gervinho was clipped after outstripping the last man. Nothing doing.

You could tell this was a better game than Saturday’s – the first Mexican wave came ten minutes later. Unlike Saturday it wasn’t cut short by an Arsenal goal but the deadlock was eventually broken three minutes before half time.

It could not have been simpler: Rosicky clipped a free kick into the six-yard box and Van Persie ran clear of the defence to plant a header past Rost.

It should have been two within a minute. Rosicky’s inch-perfect pass released Gervinho and his touch took the ball away from a defender but Rost was alert and made another timely block.

The second half brought more of the same.

Van Persie curled one effort just over the bar and almost converted Afobe’s cut-back after the teenager’s pace had taken him past a defender to the byline.

Gervinho got into a similar position moments later and Rost was forced to concede a corner, but generally speaking Arsenal’s final ball was slightly out of sorts. That will hopefully come good when the serious business starts.

Henry still fancied a goal and his first-time shot tested Szczesny with 20 minutes left, but the smart money was on Rost being beaten again. Song blazed a long-distance effort well over the bar and substitute Emmanuel Eboue shot wide as the clock ticked down.

But in the end Arsenal paid for their wastefulness when Henry sliced open their back four with a perfect pass for Roy Miller and his cut-back was diverted into the roof of the net by Bartley.

It was harsh on the young centre back but Henry was happy enough and the old master lifted the Emirates Cup as his old fans gave him one final ovation.

It was Thierry's day; let’s hope it’s Arsenal’s season.

Source: Chris Harris, Arsenal.com on 31 Jul 11