Post by Ben on Jun 23, 2007 8:01:04 GMT
Henry confirms Barcelona transfer
Thierry Henry says he is quitting Arsenal to join Spanish giants Barcelona on a four-year deal.
"I still must pass a medical on Monday but yes, I have chosen Barcelona," the 29-year-old striker told French sports daily L'Equipe on Saturday.
Barcelona had already revealed that they were close to bringing Henry to the Nou Camp in a £16m deal.
Barcelona vice-president Ferran Soriano told Spanish sports newspaper Marca that talks were at an "advanced" stage.
Soriano added it was "the wish of all parties" for an agreement to be reached for the transfer of Henry.
He also insisted that they waited for the green light from Arsenal before making a move for the striker, who is the club's all-time record goalscorer.
"We don't want to point a gun at anybody," said Soriano. "We have good relationships with the European clubs."
Henry, who only agreed a lucrative new deal with Arsenal 12 months ago, also confirmed his exit in The Sun newspaper.
In an open letter, he blamed the shock departure of Gunners vice-chairman David Dein and continuing doubts over the future of manager Arsene Wenger as the main reasons for his decision to leave.
"Arsene has been part of my life for as long as I can remember," he wrote.
"Unfortunately and understandably he has said that at this moment he will not commit to the club past the expiration of his current deal which finishes at the end of the coming season.
"I respect his decision and his honesty but I will be 31 at the end of next season and I cannot take the chance to be there without Arsene Wenger and David Dein.
"This is solely my decision, no-one has forced me to do anything and I will represent myself in this transaction. I feel it is something I just had to do."
Henry, who has also been linked with European champions AC Milan, has also revealed the reasoning behind his decision to move to the Nou Camp.
"Barcelona are a wonderful club steeped in tradition and play beautiful football. I'm sure I will be very happy there," he wrote.
"But I will miss the Arsenal fans dearly, they have supported me through thick and thin.
"They will always be in my heart, as will all the fans who make the game here so special. I will always have a special bond with Arsenal Football Club."
Henry began his career as a winger with Monaco in 1994 under the supervision of current Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger.
He was in France's 1998 World Cup-winning squad and went on to join Juventus the following season.
But his time in Turin was a largely unsuccessful one and the player was soon heading to north London with Wenger keen to get the best out of the prodigious talent.
The France international has since blossomed into one of the greatest talents in world football.
He helped Arsenal to two league titles and three FA Cups, and led the Gunners to the finals of the 2000 Uefa Cup and 2006 Champions League.
In February 2006, he became the first Arsenal player to score over 200 goals for the club with a strike against Birmingham and has bagged a club record 226 goals in 364 appearances for the Gunners.
His consistency in front of goal has seen him finish as the Premier League's top scorer on four occasions.
He he has won the PFA Players' Player of the Year title on two occasions and the football writers' player of the year three times. He has also twice finished runner-up in the Fifa world player of the year.
This is a huge loss to the Premier league if you like him or not, one his day he can do anything with the ball, £16 million the fee, had he been sold 2/3 years ago they could have had £40 million easily. He wasn't at his best last season but he struggled with injuries for a long period of the season.
I really don't know what Arsenal are going to do without him, they need to sign at least one more striker to replace him, although replacing Henry won't be easy. I've seen some Arsenal fans views on who they should sign, the names in the hat at the moment are: Owen and Martins from Newcastle, Klose from Werder Bremen.
Thierry Henry says he is quitting Arsenal to join Spanish giants Barcelona on a four-year deal.
"I still must pass a medical on Monday but yes, I have chosen Barcelona," the 29-year-old striker told French sports daily L'Equipe on Saturday.
Barcelona had already revealed that they were close to bringing Henry to the Nou Camp in a £16m deal.
Barcelona vice-president Ferran Soriano told Spanish sports newspaper Marca that talks were at an "advanced" stage.
Soriano added it was "the wish of all parties" for an agreement to be reached for the transfer of Henry.
He also insisted that they waited for the green light from Arsenal before making a move for the striker, who is the club's all-time record goalscorer.
"We don't want to point a gun at anybody," said Soriano. "We have good relationships with the European clubs."
Henry, who only agreed a lucrative new deal with Arsenal 12 months ago, also confirmed his exit in The Sun newspaper.
In an open letter, he blamed the shock departure of Gunners vice-chairman David Dein and continuing doubts over the future of manager Arsene Wenger as the main reasons for his decision to leave.
"Arsene has been part of my life for as long as I can remember," he wrote.
"Unfortunately and understandably he has said that at this moment he will not commit to the club past the expiration of his current deal which finishes at the end of the coming season.
"I respect his decision and his honesty but I will be 31 at the end of next season and I cannot take the chance to be there without Arsene Wenger and David Dein.
"This is solely my decision, no-one has forced me to do anything and I will represent myself in this transaction. I feel it is something I just had to do."
Henry, who has also been linked with European champions AC Milan, has also revealed the reasoning behind his decision to move to the Nou Camp.
"Barcelona are a wonderful club steeped in tradition and play beautiful football. I'm sure I will be very happy there," he wrote.
"But I will miss the Arsenal fans dearly, they have supported me through thick and thin.
"They will always be in my heart, as will all the fans who make the game here so special. I will always have a special bond with Arsenal Football Club."
Henry began his career as a winger with Monaco in 1994 under the supervision of current Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger.
He was in France's 1998 World Cup-winning squad and went on to join Juventus the following season.
But his time in Turin was a largely unsuccessful one and the player was soon heading to north London with Wenger keen to get the best out of the prodigious talent.
The France international has since blossomed into one of the greatest talents in world football.
He helped Arsenal to two league titles and three FA Cups, and led the Gunners to the finals of the 2000 Uefa Cup and 2006 Champions League.
In February 2006, he became the first Arsenal player to score over 200 goals for the club with a strike against Birmingham and has bagged a club record 226 goals in 364 appearances for the Gunners.
His consistency in front of goal has seen him finish as the Premier League's top scorer on four occasions.
He he has won the PFA Players' Player of the Year title on two occasions and the football writers' player of the year three times. He has also twice finished runner-up in the Fifa world player of the year.
This is a huge loss to the Premier league if you like him or not, one his day he can do anything with the ball, £16 million the fee, had he been sold 2/3 years ago they could have had £40 million easily. He wasn't at his best last season but he struggled with injuries for a long period of the season.
I really don't know what Arsenal are going to do without him, they need to sign at least one more striker to replace him, although replacing Henry won't be easy. I've seen some Arsenal fans views on who they should sign, the names in the hat at the moment are: Owen and Martins from Newcastle, Klose from Werder Bremen.
lol 
