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Arsenal are looking to extend Thierry Henry’s stay at the Emirates to enable the Frenchman to play in the north London derby against Tottenham at the end of the month, according to The Times.

Henry is expected to return to his parent club New York Red Bulls following the Gunners’ Champions League clash with AC Milan next Wednesday, after being on-loan at his former club since the first week of January.

However, manager Arsene Wenger is understood to want to see Henry stay with the north London outfit right up until the end of February, allowing the 34-year-old to be available for their FA Cup fifth round tie next weekend, as well as the clash with Spurs eight days later.

The striker looks to have no qualms about staying longer, but insists the decision is down to clubs, telling reporters: “They [Red Bulls] have been really good about it, so I can’t take advantage of them.”

SOURCE: Goal.com

This would be a clever move if Arsene Wenger can persuade the New York Red Bulls to allow Thierry Henry to stay at the Emirates Stadium a little while longer. The 34 year old has been effective when called upon, netting twice in the 92 minutes he has been used over the course of five sub appearances.

It will be a source of much consternation with Gunners fans as they watch their North London rivals Tottenham put in a genuine title challenge that has seen Harry Redknapp’s side open a 10 point lead over Arsenal.

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Thierry Henry is set to make his first appearance for Arsenal since returning to the club on a two month loan against Leeds in the FA Cup tonight.

Due to the absence of a time machine the 34-year-old Frenchman may struggle to rediscover the form that made him Arsenal’s all time leading scorer, but Leeds manager Simon Grayson is not underestimating the threat Henry will pose against his side tonight.

‘[Henry] could make anything happen and that is a fantastic attribute that Arsene Wenger has for spotting players,’ said Grayson.

“The pace and chances he used to create, he has to be one of the best.”

In the five seasons where Arsenal and Leeds were in the top flight, Henry scored 11 goals against Leeds including four in a 5-0 rout in April 2004, though Grayson does not expect that he will hit the same heights in his second spell with the Gunners.

The Leeds boss added: “He has a different experience of playing in America but it is probably fitting that he comes back and has a couple of months with Arsenal.

“We don’t expect him to be like he was but he will still be a considerable threat if he plays.”

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Thierry Henry has joined Arsenal on a two-month loan from New York Red Bulls.

The former Arsenal captain, 34, has been training with the club during the Major League Soccer off-season.

The forward will play for the club during January and February, with striker Gervinho absent at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Henry is eligible to play in Monday’s FA Cup match at home to Leeds and he said: “When it comes to Arsenal my heart will always do the talking.”

The striker was famous for wearing the number 14 shirt, which Theo Walcott currently uses. As such, Henry will be Arsenal’s number 12.

Manager Arsene Wenger added: “I am very happy. It was my desire and Thierry’s desire.

“We will have Thierry for January and February, then he will go back to the United States.

“I am sure during these two months he will be a massive asset to the team in the dressing room and on the pitch.

“He can be relaxed, not under too much pressure and be a tremendous help to the team.”

SOURCE: BBC Sport

So there you have it, all done and dusted and Thierry Henry should be ready for action tomorrow and may well be in the squad for the FA Cup squad as Arsenal host Leeds United.

No doubt sales of TH12 shirts will go through the roof and as well as the financial benefits of bringing an icon like Thierry Henry back to the North London club, and make no mistake merchandising revenue from the deal will be huge, the 34 year old will also fill the gap left by Gervinho and Marouane Chamakh and will offer Robin Van Persie very able support up front.

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Never would I have thought that I would be writing an article about the ‘problems’ facing a team with centre midfield options ‘restricted’ to James Milner, Gareth Barry, Owen Hargeaves and Nigel de Jong. Four international footballers who are bonafide world class players and all, I’m sure, would walk into any team in the Premier League.

And yet, Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini will no doubt be rueing Yaya Touré’s imminent departure for the African Cup of Nations which begins on the 21st of January.

Touré is a huge driving force for The Citizens, with 5 goals already to his name this season, and his ability and importance could perhaps not be better evidenced than it was in his display in Tuesday night’s 3-0 drubbing of Liverpool, in which he drew the penalty from Martin Skrtel following a fantastic run from the halfway line that led to the final goal of the game and where he was denied the Man of the Match award only by the back-line brilliance of club captain Vincent Kompany. Touré is the type of box-to-box midfielder that any manager would pay top dollar to have in their starting XI; Roberto Mancini clearly agreed when he brought the Ivorian to Eastlands from Barcelona for a reported £24 million, and just last month the 28-year old was crowned as the 2011 African Player of the Year.

Now, Touré is one of ten players who could leave the Premier League this month to represent their respective countries at Africa’s biggest international competition. Older brother Kolo Touré is another Manchester City player leaving for Gabon and Equatorial Guinea, although his absence from the side over the past six months for failing a drug test has meant that Kompany and Joleon Lescott have formed a formidable partnership at the heart of the league-leaders’ defence and, as a result, will know they are very capable without the former Arsenal man.

If I asked the question ‘Who was the signing of the summer in 2011′s offseason?’, I’d have trouble arguing with someone who gave Demba Ba as their response. The Senegalese striker signed for Newcastle United on a free transfer following West Ham’s relegation to the Championship and has gone on to score 15 league goals this season already; only Robin van Persie has found the net more frequently. As Ba boards the plane for central Africa, therefore, Newcastle manager Alan Pardew could be forgiven for having a tear in his eye, as he also looks set to lose star midfielder and reportedly Manchester United target Cheik Tioté. Their back-up striking options of the Ameboi brothers, Peter Lovenkrands and Leon Best will look to use Ba’s short-term departure as an opportunity to cement a first-team place, but questions must be asked as to whether they have that same va-va-voom.

Speaking of va-va-voom, Arsenal legend Thierry Henry is expected to make his loan return to North London official any minute now, just in time to wish a safe trip to another Ivorian plying his trade in England’s top tier, Gervinho. The dodgy-haired striker has come under criticism this season for some questionable finishing, but there can be no doubting the fact that he has a role to play when the Gunners go forward as part of a front three that also involves van Persie and England winger Theo Walcott. Henry could fill that Gervinho-shaped hole on the left for the coming month as he could throw back to the role he played in a Barcelona team with Lionel Messi, Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto’o that was enough to keep defenders awake for hours into the night. Andrey Arshavin, disappointing so far this season could also be given a returning place in the Arsenal attack, although Wenger may look more closely at teenage sensation and England Under-21s winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Similarly, the departure of Ivory Coast powerhouse Didier Drogba could mean a greater run of fixtures for misfiring striker Fernando Torres. Torres signed for Chelsea for £50 million but has disappointed many by only scoring 3 times in his first 27 games for the Blues. Can Drogba’s absence lead to an increase in Torres’ self-belief and goalscoring tally?

Elsewhere QPR will lose two of their star players in Moroccan playmaker Adel Taarabt and Senegalese left-back Armand Traoré; Chelsea will be without wantaway Ivorian forward Solomon Kalou; and Wigan will also notice the tournament pinching their Senegalese midfielder Mohamed Diamé.

Some fans will miss their team’s stars, some players will see their teammate’s departure as an opportunity, a chance to shine. But what of the players for whom there were no seats on the plane?

Several of the Premier League’s managers will be wiping their brows, grateful for the fact that their African stars will not be entering the competition. Sunderland manager Martin O’Neill will surely be pleased at Benin’s failure to qualify for the tournament as it means he can keep hold of arguably his best player in midfield maestro Stéphane Sessègnon.

Emmanuel Adebayor will stay at Spurs after his native Togo failed to qualify for the tournament. Perhaps the biggest shock of the African Cup of Nations qualifying phase was the failures of the Nigerian national team. With six Nigerian internationals representing Premier League clubs (Yakubu, Peter Odemwingie, John Obi Mikel, Dickson Etuhu, Victor Moses and Victor Anichebe), I’m sure there are plenty of managers and fans alike who will be pleased by the surprise pre-mature exit.

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