Thierry Henry believes the consistent criticism of Arsenal's playing style is unjust. The club legend insists Mikel Arteta has found a way to bring the championship title back to the London side, making them a challenging opponent to face.
Last season, Arsenal clinched their first Premier League title in 22 years and reached the Champions League final, where they narrowly lost to PSG on penalties. However, the team faced criticism for their reliance on set-pieces and their cautious approach against top teams. In the Champions League final, Arsenal controlled possession for just 24.7% of the match.
Henry stated:
It took Mikel three and a half or four years to make this team competitive. Building a team is not easy, but the hierarchy believed in him, gave him time, and he has proved to be a good manager.
In the past, people claimed we weren't a fighting team, that opponents could do whatever they liked against us. But we played beautiful football. That’s how Arsenal was discussed.
According to Henry, in order to surpass Manchester City and Liverpool, Arteta had to evolve the team:
At some point, we needed to find a way to outpace Liverpool and City. Arteta worked hard to find a way to do that. Suddenly, we became tougher, started to dominate, and it became difficult for opponents to create chances against us. Yet now people say we play unattractive football.
Arsenal has gone a long time without winning the league. At some stage, it was just about finding a way to win.
Henry also wasn't surprised by Arsenal's conservative approach in the Champions League final:
People kept asking me if I was surprised by our approach in the Champions League final. No, the team played like that all season — maybe not always, but particularly against teams of that calibre.
There’s nothing wrong with that, it’s simply a way to play. I’ve seen teams that win everything that way, and others that triumph with beautiful football.
The Frenchman pointed out Arsenal's recent 0-3 defeat to Brighton:
And then you lose 0-3 to Brighton, a team that doesn’t just sit back. They did something exceptional. I can’t even recall the last time Arsenal conceded three goals without scoring.
Henry's main argument in favour of Arteta is the results:
You don’t have to love that type of football, but you must respect Arteta. He brought back the championship title, and I respect that.
Perhaps the style isn’t exactly the same and we don’t always play in the same way, but for a long time, European teams didn’t enjoy facing Atletico. Now it’s the same with us. Opponents don’t like playing against Arsenal.
