July 15, 2007
ARSENE WENGER insists he did not force Thierry Henry to leave Arsenal.
Henry finally completed a move to Barcelona last month after weeks of speculation.
But Wenger has revealed the £16million deal was entirely down to Henry's desire to quit the Emirates.
The Gunners boss said: "Of course you don't want to lose a world-class player without having thought about it.
"But at the end of the day, it was his decision.
"Thierry wanted to leave, he has given eight great years to the club.
"You don't make a decision like that in a minute. You check if the player is completely sure of what he wants to do.
"But Thierry's decision is down to him. He wanted to make the move."
Wenger admits his former skipper will be badly missed as Arsenal bid to mount a serious title challenge this season.
But the Frenchman has hinted the time was right for Henry to move on.
He added: "Thierry is nearly 30 and he had a long time to think about his future while he was injured.
"Maybe he didn't have the patience any more to let our young team develop."
Many critics expected midfielder Cesc Fabregas to follow Henry to La Liga.
But Wenger is determined to do whatever it takes to ensure Fabregas stays in London for as long as possible.
He said: "We lost Henry this year so we wanted to keep the stability of the club.
"And Cesc, in my mind, will never leave. He has shown many times he is committed to the club and that is why he turned down Real Madrid.
"It's important that the player wants to stay. You can force a player to stay but it's better if he wants to.
"It is true I spoke to him when I heard all the noises in the Spanish newspapers.
"I know what a massive step it is for him to turn down Real Madrid when you are Spanish.
"We're very proud of that and it would have been very bad news for us if Cesc had left."
ARSENE WENGER insists he did not force Thierry Henry to leave Arsenal.
Henry finally completed a move to Barcelona last month after weeks of speculation.
But Wenger has revealed the £16million deal was entirely down to Henry's desire to quit the Emirates.
The Gunners boss said: "Of course you don't want to lose a world-class player without having thought about it.
"But at the end of the day, it was his decision.
"Thierry wanted to leave, he has given eight great years to the club.
"You don't make a decision like that in a minute. You check if the player is completely sure of what he wants to do.
"But Thierry's decision is down to him. He wanted to make the move."
Wenger admits his former skipper will be badly missed as Arsenal bid to mount a serious title challenge this season.
But the Frenchman has hinted the time was right for Henry to move on.
He added: "Thierry is nearly 30 and he had a long time to think about his future while he was injured.
"Maybe he didn't have the patience any more to let our young team develop."
Many critics expected midfielder Cesc Fabregas to follow Henry to La Liga.
But Wenger is determined to do whatever it takes to ensure Fabregas stays in London for as long as possible.
He said: "We lost Henry this year so we wanted to keep the stability of the club.
"And Cesc, in my mind, will never leave. He has shown many times he is committed to the club and that is why he turned down Real Madrid.
"It's important that the player wants to stay. You can force a player to stay but it's better if he wants to.
"It is true I spoke to him when I heard all the noises in the Spanish newspapers.
"I know what a massive step it is for him to turn down Real Madrid when you are Spanish.
"We're very proud of that and it would have been very bad news for us if Cesc had left."