Thierry Henry makes damning verdict on Arsenal manager after Champions League game

The Gunners beat Paris Saint-German at the Emirates. Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz were on the scoresheet as Arsenal beat last season’s Champions League semifinalists.

Mikel Arteta said the win on Tuesday night was a needed statement win for Arsenal:

“We played one of the best teams in the world, they are super dominant in the league, they have so much quality, understanding and tactical options, and we dealt with it really well, with a lot of personality.

“We were very determined, we wanted to be owning that pitch, playing the way we wanted to and in the first half, I think we were very impressive with the performance and the two goals that we scored.”

Thierry Henry says Arsenal made a mistake with Unai Emery

Aston Villa beat Bayern Munich 1-0 at Villa Park. Unai Emery’s side now have six points in the Champions League this season.

After witnessing how well Aston Villa played on Wednesday night, Thierry Henry thinks Unai Emery should have been given more time at Arsenal:

‘Oh yeah, big time. He’s a tactical genius.

‘He always goes out there and makes sure his team has an advantage tactically because that’s how he operates. We all know what he did in Spain.

‘For me, obviously this is no disrespect to what Mikel Arteta is doing and is doing extremely well for Arsenal, I just thought that if we kept him [Emery] a bit longer he would have been a success at Arsenal.

‘He did show it straight after when he left the club.

‘I have massive respect for him.’

Henry’s praise for Emery will seek harsh to Arsenal fans, who are fully behind Mikel Arteta. The Gunners boss has also seen success with the team, having won an FA Cup in his first season. Former Manchester United striker Louis Saha even said that Arteta does not need trophies to show his greatness.

Thierry Henry’s fellow pundit on the CBS show, Jamie Carragher, also rates Unai Emery very highly:

‘I think he’s fantastic, I think he’s one of the best coaches in European football,’

‘He’s had great success in Europe, not in this particular competition [the Champions League], but in the Europa League specifically, with Sevilla and Villarreal.’

Mikel Arteta has already beaten Unai Emery this season, a 2-0 win at Villa Park. So both Henry and Carragher should also respect the work Arteta has done with the gunners.