Thierry Henry gave Arsenal their swagger and grew into the EPL’s greatest ever striker

Martyn Thomas 10:47 17/12/2014
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  • Legendary: Thierry Henry has made Arsenal a powerhouse.

    It may seem hard to believe, but there was a time when Arsenal fans were not all that taken with Thierry Henry.

    – Henry announces retirement to take up Sky Sports pundit role
    – Henry's greatest hits: Magic moments from the Arsenal legend

    Trying to adapt to an unfamiliar position, it took the Frenchman nine games to find the net as fans pondered whether he could replace the departed Nicolas Anelka.

    But while Anelka never truly found a home, his compatriot emphatically did, and cemented his place as arguably the greatest striker to ever grace the English Premier League in the process.

    Having got that elusive first strike against Southampton at The Dell, Henry went on to score a whopping 175 times in 258 top flight appearances for Arsenal. When you consider he also provided 74 assists, it means his contribution was pretty much a goal every game.

    No other player has come anywhere near such impressive figures during the Premier League era.

    But the statistics do not tell the whole story. Henry brought an arrogance to Arsenal’s play that not only helped propel them onto success, but also redefined the way we think about front men.

    Using the nous he had honed as a winger with Monaco and Juventus, the Frenchman gave English defences a problem they had rarely encountered before.

    Not content with a one-on-one battle with opposition centrebacks, he would drift out onto the left flank, at times appearing uninterested in the play developing around him. Yet, he would come to life in an instant, picking up the ball and dribbling at defenders so bamboozled that they didn’t know what to do, other than back off and allow him the space to score mesmerising goals.

    And how many of those there were. It is hard to pick a favourite Henry strike from his time with Arsenal; his solo effort against Tottenham in 2002 highlighted his danger in open play, while that flick and hit against Manchester United two years earlier showed he was not only a threat with the ball at his feet.

    What is also undeniable is that Henry was a man for the big occasion. When Arsenal needed digging out of a hole, against Inter Milan in 2003 or Liverpool five months later, their talisman invariably came to the fore. There are rightly question marks over his leadership – Henry won little as a captain – but his role in Arsenal’s march to the 2006 Champions League final cannot be diminished.

    The emotion of the final against Barcelona in Paris certainly got the better of him, and there is little doubt that he left for Spain at least a year too late.

    But he still contributed in Catalonia, scoring 26 times – six in the Champions League – as the Blaugrana swept all before them in Pep Guardiola’s first season in charge. When Lionel Messi says he cannot look someone in the face, you know you are in the presence of greatness.

    Although Henry undoubtedly played his best football in England, he contributed elsewhere, winning leagues in France and Spain, and helping to grow the football’s popularity during a commendable spell in Major League Soccer.

    Henry also won a World Cup and Euro 2000 with France, finishing as his country’s top goalscorer with 51 in 123 games, even if he never truly won his countrymen over.

    His arrogance played a part in that, and it is interesting that he will now call London, and not Paris, home. But for the Premier League, it is fitting to have its most lethal marksman back in town.

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