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maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 17 DECEMBER 2014 20 Sport FOOTBALL SPORTTODAY Thierry Henry retires from football Thierry Henry has announced his retirement from football and will join Sky Sports as a football expert and ambassador from the start of 2015 THE 37-year-old former Arse- nal striker left the New York Red Bulls at the start of the month af- ter they were knocked out of the MLS play-offs, but there was spec- ulation he might choose to play on at another club - with a return to the Gunners mooted. However, the former France in- ternational and World Cup win- ner has instead called time on a trophy-laden career which includ- ed spells with Monaco, Juventus, Arsenal, Barcelona and the Red Bulls. In a statement, Henry said: "Af- ter 20 years in the game I have de- cided to retire from professional football. It has been an incredible journey and I would like to thank all the fans, team mates and indi- viduals involved with AS Monaco, Juventus, Arsenal FC, FC Barcelo- na, the New York Red Bulls and of course the French National Team that have made my time in the game so special. "It is now time for a differ- ent career path and I am pleased to say that I will be returning to London and joining Sky Sports. I will hopefully share some of the insights, observations and experi- ences I have learnt over the years with you guys. "I have had some amazing mem- ories (mostly good!) and a won- derful experience. "I hope you have enjoyed watching as much as I have en- joyed taking part. "See you on the other side..." Henry will always be most closely associated with Arse- nal, where he is the all-time goalscorer with 228 goals in 377 games across two differ- ent spells. Arsene Wenger, who had known him as a young player at Monaco, signed him from Juventus for £11million in 1999, and immediately shifted him from the wing to a central striking po- sition. His blend of pace and power made him one of the most feared forwards in English football, and Henry won the Premier League ti- tle twice with the Gunners, as well a s the FA Cup three times. Henry left Arse- nal in 2007 and joined Barcelona, where he won the Champions League in 2009. He also added two La Liga titles, the Copa del Rey, Spanish Super- copa, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup to his honours list in three seasons at the Nou Camp. His medal collection also in- cludes a Ligue 1 title and Trophee des Champions with Monaco, his first professional club. He spent the final five years of his playing career with the Red Bulls, returning to Arsenal to make four appearances on loan in early 2012. With France, Henry scored 51 goals in 123 appearances - only Lilian Thuram has more caps with Les Bleus. He was a member of the 1998 World Cup winning squad, while also being a runner up in 2006. Henry was a European champion in 2000 and was part of the team that won the Confedera- tions Cup in 2003. Asked if he had thought about another stint in north London, Henry told Sky Sports: "You kind of never leave Arsenal. "How many comebacks do you make? At one point it will turn out to be a bad move. We all love the first Rocky but I'm not too sure about the last one." His new colleague at Sky Sports Gary Neville said: "We were bless- ed in this country to see Thierry playing at his peak, potentially one of the greatest players in the world and even if you support- ed another team you couldn't help but enjoy watching him play. It's always a shame when such a career comes to an end, but it's very much Sky Sports' gain and I look for- ward to working with him." Fellow football expert Jamie Carragher added: "Defenders every where will be breathing a sigh of relief that he has hung his boots up, he was certainly the toughest opponent I ever faced and possibly the best player the Premier League has seen. I would have loved him to be on the same team as me during my play- ing career, I'm delighted we're finally on the same side." THIERRY HENRY FACTFILE 1977: Born August 17 in Paris. 1990: Joins French first division side Monaco as a 13-year-old. 1994: Makes top-flight debut against Nice on August 31, aged 17. 1996: December - Signs pre-contract with Real Madrid, who approach player through agent not registered with FIFA. The world body fines both player and Spanish club and annuls agreement. 1997: May - Monaco win Ligue 1 title, with Henry having scored nine goals in 36 matches. October 11 - Wins first French cap in friendly against South Africa in Lens. 1998: Plays for France in World Cup finals, scoring three goals in six matches, but remains on bench in 3-0 victory over Brazil in July 12 final. 1999: January 18 - Signs for Italian giants Juventus. August 3 - Signs for Arsenal for £10.5million. September 9 - Nets first goal for Gunners after coming on as substitute in victory at Southampton. 2000: June - Scores three times in five games in French Euro 2000 success, including the opener in semi-final clash with Portugal. 2002: June 6 - Sent off for a late tackle against Uruguay during France's disap- pointing World Cup defence. 2003: April 27 - Named PFA Player of the Year. 2004: April 16 - Scores four against Leeds in the Premier League, taking him to 150 goals for Arsenal. April 25 - Named PFA Player of the Year for second year in a row on the day Arsenal clinch title with 2-2 draw at Tottenham. 2005: October 18 - Equals Ian Wright's Arsenal record of 185 goals in a Champi- ons League game against Sparta Prague, then scores a second to break the mark. 2006: May - Signs four-year deal following speculation linking him with Barce- lona. July - Ends the World Cup with three goals, with France losing the final to Italy on penalties. 2007: Feb 3 - Scores 226th and final goal for Gunners in a league draw against Middlesbrough. June 25 - Signs for Barcelona for £16.1million. September 19 - Scores his first goal for his new club in a 3-0 Champions League win over Lyon. 2009: May - Wins league, cup and Champions League treble with Barca. November 18 - Earns widespread condemnation when he uses his hand in the build-up to crucial goal for France in their World Cup play-off against the Republic of Ireland. The goal books France's place in South Africa. 2010: January 18 - FIFA announces it will take no disciplinary action against Henry over handball. June 20 - Part of the France squad which refuses to train after Nicolas Anelka was sent home following a bust-up with coach Raymond Do- menech during a poor World Cup in South Africa. July 14 - Joins MLS side New York Red Bulls on a "multi-year" contract. July 15 - Confirms retirement from French national team, having scored 51 goals in 123 appearances. August 28 - Scores first MLS goal in a 2-0 victory over San Jose Earth- quakes. 2011: January 11 - Arsenal confirm Henry is training at the club during the MLS off-season but no agreement to sign the player is reached. November 17 - Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger confirms Henry is back training with the club. December 10 - Arsenal unveil a bronze statue of Henry outside the Emir- ates Stadium as part of the club's 125th anniversary celebrations. December 30 - Wenger confirms Henry will sign a two-month deal if an insurance agreement can be reached. January 6, 2012 - After training with Arsenal during MLS off-season, Henry re-signs for Gunners on a two-month loan deal. Makes his second Arsenal debut as a substitute against Leeds in FA Cup third round and scores the only goal of the tie. Scores the winning goal in stoppage time in a 2-1 win over Sunderland in his final league match on loan. February 17 - Returns to New York Red Bulls to prepare for the new season and goes on to help them become champions of the regular season - the club's first major trophy in their 17-year history. December 1, 2014 - Leaves New York Red Bulls after four and a half years at the club. December 16 - Announces retirement from football after glittering career and a new role as a pundit with Sky Sports.