Henry: I'm not an incredible sulk

14 April 2012

Much has been made of Thierry Henry's sullen demeanour on the pitch, which has been emphasised recently through low-key goal celebrations and armwaving gestures bearing the signs of frustration.

But ahead of Arsenal's Champions League clash with Bayern Munich, the Frenchman today made an impassioned attempt to explain his actions, saying that his idiosyncratic mannerisms are driven by his quest for perfection.

"People talk about my attitude and body language. I know sometimes I can be a pain when I'm like this, but it's just because I want to win," said Henry. "In the dressing room I always like to laugh but on the pitch things are different for me. I'm not there to have a laugh, I'm there to play.

"A lot of people in France said that when I'm on the pitch it seems like I'm upset, but I tried to explain it's not because I'm upset.

"That's why I came here today. Usually I don't talk before a Champions League game, but I thought it was quite important to explain why I do this on the pitch, why sometimes you see my body language, to explain once and for all that it is because sometimes I am really upset with myself. "Everything I do, it has to be done well. Some people think that I'm having a go at someone else, sometimes it does happen, but more often it's because I'm upset with myself. When I am on the pitch and my team are struggling and I know there is expectation on me and I don't do it I am a bit upset with myself, because I know that when I am on a good day I can help the team really well."

Henry's first goal against Portsmouth on Saturday was followed by the kind of muted response with which the striker is synonymous. However, the Premiership's leading scorer claims that acknowledging the contribution of a team-mate is far more important than basking in his own glory.

"I know sometimes it comes across like I'm not happy [when I score], but I have to go across and say thank you to my teammates," he said.

"I hate, and I really mean hate, strikers who, when people give them a goal, go on the other side to celebrate like they have done something amazing. The most important thing for me is to go back and say thank you to my team-mates."

Henry is acutely aware that, as Arsenal's most influential player, the spotlight will again fall on him tonight. And, though he relishes such occasions, he believes that far too much is made of the contribution that he does or does not make.

"I keep on seeing people talking about my goals. You look at my record in Europe and I don't think that it is bad," said Henry. "People keep talking about

Thierry Henry but today it won't be Thierry Henry against Bayern Munich. It will be Arsenal against Bayern Munich.

"People talk about Roy Makaay - I didn't see Roy Makaay score when we played there but [Bayern] still won 3-1. It's a team game, it's not a oneman show. The only player who can win a game on his own is Diego Maradona. After him I didn't see anyone winning a game on his own. In the 1986 World Cup he played on his own. People talk about Ronaldinho - he's an amazing player, don't get me wrong, but he's scored four goals in the Champions League, two penalties, four in the league, three penalties. He has people around him, it's not only the Ronaldinho show when Barcelona play. It's a team game."

Perhaps the greatest illustration of Henry's character is found in his admission that winning the Champions League and FA Cup this season would not make up for the disappointment of missing out on the Premiership. "That's the way I am," said the Frenchman.

"I don't know if I'm a perfectionist, but I'm trying to be."

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