belong here

Henry - Why I belong here with Arsenal
www.arsenal.com

Thierry Henry’s decision to stay at Arsenal was made in the wake of the Champions League defeat.

The French striker finally ended a season of speculation by putting pen to paper on a four-year deal. And, amid a myriad of factors, the brave yet agonising defeat at the Stade de France had a major influence.

"The game reassured me of one thing I wanted to know - how far I can go with that team,” said Henry. “I know we lost but they showed me they are a team with heart and lots of quality. We can be so proud of what we did.

"I said my decision would come before the World Cup. But I also said I wanted to concentrate on pegging Tottenham back for fourth spot and then the Champions League Final.

“After that was done I was very quick to make up my mind. As a guy that is how I am.

“There were other things that made me stay — my family, London, the fans here and away from home, the press, everyone. All those little things help to make my mind up.

"I always refer to Arsenal as my home. I have been welcomed with open arms, the love I receive here - sometimes from non-Arsenal fans - is something I can't forget about."

“Here, they understand and respect football,” said Henry. “We lost on Wednesday [in the Champions League Final] but when I turned to clap the fans they were still there and they clapped us. In some other countries they would have left or been upset with the team but they understood that on the day we gave everything. We gave it our best shot.

Arsène Wenger believes that Thierry Henry will go down in history as the Premiership’s greatest player.

The striker, who committed his future to Arsenal on Friday, is certainly up with the likes of Eric Cantona, Dennis Bergkamp, Alan Shearer and Gianfranco Zola but his manager thinks he is top of the list.

“I believe he is, yes,” said Wenger. “It is all about opinion but after that you have the numbers.

“With great players you check two things — one, they make their team win, two, the numbers are there to prove what they have achieved. In four years you will look back at the numbers he achieved and find they are really impressive.

“But what I rate much more is the number of assists. Even when you score less he can still contribute to making his team win. That was Dennis Bergkamp's strength - to score and make goals for others. The great players have it."