Arsenal icon Thierry Henry was once slammed by Emmanuel Petit for his ‘extremely arrogant attitude’

Emmanuel Petit reveals he once laid into Arsenal legend Thierry Henry for his ‘extremely ARROGANT attitude’ when celebrating a goal at Highbury, before urging Arsene Wenger to reprimand the striker after his antics

  • Thierry Henry is widely considered one of the best Premier League players ever
  • But that didn’t stop Emmanuel Petit from ripping into the Arsenal legend
  • Petit has revealed he once lambasted Henry over an ‘arrogant’ celebration
  • He pulled his fellow Frenchman up on it after other team-mates also complained 

Former Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Petit has revealed he once ripped into Thierry Henry for his ‘extremely arrogant attitude’ during a match at Highbury. 

Henry cemented a legacy as one of the greatest Premier League players of all time during his iconic stint with the Gunners, scoring 226 goals in 370 appearances while winning two top-flight titles and as many FA Cups.

He also played a crucial role in their famous 2003/04 Invincibles triumph, in which they became champions without losing a single game that season.

Emmanuel Petit spent three years at Arsenal

Emmanuel Petit says he once ripped into Thierry Henry for his ‘extremely arrogant attitude’

Nevertheless, Petit has opened up on the time he felt Henry crossed the line while celebrating a goal for Arsenal at Highbury.

The Frenchman, who played with Henry in north London from 1997-2000, told RMC about his compatriot: ‘I had a conversation with Titi [Henry] in front of Arsene Wenger when we were playing for Arsenal.

‘There were five of us at a sponsor’s event, together with Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Vieira.  

‘We had played a few days before, I think at Highbury, and Titi had scored twice.

Henry cemented a legacy as one of the greatest players in Arsenal history during his career

Henry cemented a legacy as one of the greatest players in Arsenal history during his career 

But his stunning goalscoring form for the Gunners didn't stop Petit from laying into him

But his stunning goalscoring form for the Gunners didn’t stop Petit from laying into him

‘I hadn’t liked his celebration one little bit. He had gone over to the corner flag, with an extremely arrogant attitude. I told him that myself and some of the other players didn’t like the way he celebrated.

‘He understandably didn’t take what I said at all well. But it was all too much as far as I was concerned.

‘I challenged Arsene, and told him it wasn’t my job to tell Henry off – instead it was down to him.’ 

Petit clinched a Premier League and FA Cup at Arsenal in the 1997/98 campaign, while also winning the World Cup alongside Henry with France at the end of that season.

After leaving the Gunners in 2000, Petit spent a season with Barcelona and three years with Chelsea before bringing the curtain down on his career.

The Frenchman has revealed one of his compatriot's goal celebrations didn't sit well with him

The Frenchman has revealed one of his compatriot’s goal celebrations didn’t sit well with him

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