I know what Thierry Henry really thinks of Unai Emery - what he said about Arsenal decision was odd

Latest Arsenal news with Thierry Henry changing his stance on former Gunners boss Unai Emery following his success at Aston Villa

Thierry Henry appears to be a huge fan of former Aston Villa boss Unai Emery, but that was not the case during his tenure at Arsenal. Emery was the chosen successor to Arsene Wenger at Emirates Stadium following spells in charge of Sevilla and Paris Saint-Germain; however, he was relieved of his duties after just 18 months.

Emery returned to Spain after an unsuccessful period in the Premier League, where he achieved more European glory. As a head coach of Villareal, Emery beat Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Manchester United in the Europa League final before being handed a chance back in England as Villa's replacement for Steven Gerrard.

Villa were lingering above the relegation zone upon his arrival, and just under two years later they are now playing Champions League football, having got to a European semi-final in the previous campaign. The Midlands side beat Young Boys in their opening clash and followed that up on Wednesday evening with a historic win against Bayern Munich at Villa Park.

Fresh off that unbelievable victory against a footballing juggernaut, Henry was full of praise for Emery, which even saw him make a rather outlandish Arsenal claim. Speaking on CBS Sports, he said: "We all know what he did in Spain [winning the Europa League four times with Sevilla and Villarreal].

"It's no disrespect to what Mikel Arteta is doing, and he's doing extremely well for Arsenal, but I just thought that if we kept him 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."

Given the position Emery has found himself in at Villa, it is very easy to make those claims, especially with the benefit of hindsight and also without the full context. With that in mind, the squad Emery was working with was not up to the best standard, and while he was partly to blame, even Henry himself admitted there was a problem.

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"We are in a way better place than we were before,' he told The Rest is Football podcast back in 2023. "I actually see myself in the team now - as a fan I'm not talking as a player. I see a team fighting, making mistakes which can happen.

"Five years ago I couldn't relate to the team, I just couldn't. I was going to the game because I had to not because I wanted to. Just because I was an Arsenal fan not because I wanted to see them play. But now I can see what they're about."

Without spelling out the obvious, it is quite clear that at the time Henry was not the biggest fan of Emery and there is no shame in admitting that he arrived in north London at the wrong time and in unfortunate circumstances. At Villa, he has found the opposite and that is why he is thriving but that does not mean he would have necessarily turned out to be a success at Arsenal in due course.

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