Wenger: Henry still has the fire

Arsene Wenger is in no doubt former Arsenal
captain Thierry Henry still has the "fire" to light up
the Premier League and help drive the Gunners on
towards European success. The 34-year-old has
rejoined his old club on a short-term loan deal from
the New York Red Bulls ahead of the start of the
new Major League Soccer season.
Henry became Arsenal's record goalscorer during
eight trophy-laden seasons with the north London
club before leaving to join Barcelona in 2007 and
last month was honoured with a bronze statue
outside Emirates Stadium. After watching the
forward train with the first-team squad in recent
weeks, Wenger was convinced Henry remains a
champion.
"I watched the [MLS] play-off against LA Galaxy.
That is when I saw Thierry and thought he has still
got the pride and desire to win," said Wenger. "It
was still there because he was so angry and I didn't
expect that from him. I thought he would be a bit
cooler. That was the moment when I saw the fire
was still there.
"I saw his desire to go and get the ball back. You
could see the desire to fight and the pride to win is
there. You could see that the champions never lose
that, you saw that with David Beckham and Thierry
has that as well."
Wenger added: "It is how he can cope physically
every day with the training and how much he
wants it as well. I was quickly convinced, but I
wasn't sure he wanted the challenge as well."
Henry will be available for Monday night's FA Cup
third-round tie against Leeds at Emirates Stadium,
then the upcoming Premier League encounter
against Manchester United at Emirates Stadium, as
well as the first leg of their UEFA Champions League
last-16 clash at AC Milan, while his deal could yet
also include the clash with Tottenham on 26
February.
Wenger revealed he wanted to see first hand
whether Henry could still cut it in the top flight and
also make a difference to what is still a young
squad short on experienced winners. "It took me
two to three weeks to make the decision because I
had to get used to the idea to see what kind of
impact he would have with the team, how he was
physically and how motivated he is to come here
every day and work hard," said Wenger.
"I don't know how it is in the United States, but I
know how high the demands are physically in the
Premier League. They are absolutely exceptional
and the highest in the world so you have to see
how much he can cope with that."
Wenger rejected criticism the move for Henry was
in fact a step backwards and an admission his
current transfer policy had failed. "I wanted Thierry
to stay, but he said we have a young team who
will be good in three or four years, but I cannot
wait, I am 30 and need to go somewhere where I
have a chance to win, which was completely
logical," the Arsenal manager said.
Wenger accepts the FA Cup has now "added
importance" after Arsenal's exit from the League
Cup to Manchester City denied them another shot at
ending what will be a seven-year trophy
drought. "Last year we played in every single
competition with top commitment," the Arsenal
manager said. "We went to the final of the Carling
Cup, which we lost, then went out [of the
Champions League] a few days later in Barcelona
and then lost to Manchester United in the FA Cup. In
one week, it was all away, but we always try to do
well in the FA Cup."