Arsene Wenger today ruled out the possibility of Thierry Henry re-joining Arsenal for a third time.
The Gunners’ all-time top goalscorer was at London Colney along with fellow ex-Gunner Robert Pires this morning to train with the first team ahead of their Champions League clash against Marseille.
Henry spent eight years at the club up until 2007 and is a regular at the training ground but his return combined with Arsenal’s lack of centre-forward options briefly raised suggestions that the 36-year-old could feature on a short-term basis in the New Year.
The New York Red Bulls striker signed a two-month loan deal with Arsenal last year during the Major League Soccer close season but Wenger insists there will be no repeat this time around, either as a player or a coach.
“At the moment he is invited just to practise when he can and when he wants,” he said. “We have a big staff, a very competent one, and we have the right number to support the team to achieve the targets. Thierry is a player, one day certainly it will be different, but at the moment no.”
Aaron Ramsey hailed Henry’s impact in training as Arsenal look to continue their fine start to the season that has seen them rise to the top of the Premier League and Champions League Group F.
“It's great to see, obviously, a legend like him coming back to train with us and be part of the [training] squad,” said Ramsey. “He's done everything in the game and won things here, so his experiences he can pass on to this young team and help us along. So yes, it's always welcome to have him back.”
Wenger also backed Mesut Ozil to find his best form after a string of subdued performances in recent weeks.
He said: “He is just arrived here three months ago and overall did not have the best of preparations for the league. He is 25 years old so of course there is a lot of room for improvement for him.
“We have plenty of players who can take the ball and play you know because he plays in the central part of the pitch the ball goes through him. But we don’t put any special responsibility on him. Maybe he feels a bit more pressure to do that.”
Arsenal have Mathieu Flamini available again after the midfielder served a domestic suspension.
