Arsenal: With or Without Henry?

Arsenal fans know it must be summer because every day there are fresh stories in the media about the imminent departure of their main man. In 1999 it was all about Nicolas Anelka. The following summer Emmanuel Petit and Marc Overmars. From 2000 until 2005 when he eventually left, Patrick Vieira was the object of desire for La Liga and Serie A clubs. And for the last two summers it is Thierry Henry who has been on the verge of joining Barcelona.

Gooners have grown weary of the constant speculation. But one thing they have learned is that the rumours are no more than idle gossip until Arsenal, and Henry himself, start corroborating the story. Then they can be taken seriously.

AC Milan were added to the mix - but again in a general way, Carlo Ancelotti being quoted as saying that Henry is a great player and among those who could be of interest to the Rossoneri. Hardly earth-shattering stuff given that Henry would probably be of interest to any number of clubs, were he to become available. He is one of the games most dazzling talents, with technical ability, pace, eye for goal, selfless team play and improvisational skills that would make any team anywhere a better one.

There are two key points in this scenario from an Arsenal perspective: firstly, whether or not Henry is on the market; and secondly, if he is, and he goes, what his departure would mean for the Gunners.

The Barcelona camp continue to be assiduous in their courting of the Frenchman. "According to reports in Spain," as the saying goes, Barca have framed an offer of Samuel Eto’'o plus €25 million (£17 million) for Henry, with Txiki Beguiristain claiming that negotiations with Arsenal officials are already underway and that Arsene Wenger has agreed to the deal.

Other Catalan sources are more circumspect, claiming that Barca's Ferran Soriano and Begeristain have made contact with Henry's "camp," and will resurrect the four-year contract they'd put in place for the player a year ago.

Meanwhile the likes of Ronaldinho, Xavi and Lilian Thuram have been telling Henry through the media how welcome he'd be made at Camp Nou.

On the other hand, Wenger has assured Arsenal fans that Henry will not be leaving the Emirates Stadium, while Henry has reiterated several times that his future is with Arsenal. He has also expressed exasperation at repeatedly having to refute speculative transfer stories by declaring that he is happy at Arsenal.

However, last week in China, when pressed yet again by journalists for his position on a possible transfer, Henry replied: "Since I started playing football there has been speculation about me going to a lot of clubs. So that will never, ever stop. But, as I said, for now I'm an Arsenal player. So there is nothing to add to it. For now I am an Arsenal player, so that's all I can tell you."

Those two little words, 'for now' sent the media into another paroxysm of speculation......

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