Henry: Anger spurred me on

Thierry Henry says Arsenal's poor form inspired his record breaking feat on Tuesday.

The Frenchman surpassed Ian Wright's all-time scoring record for The Gunners on Tuesday night as his brace handed Arsene Wenger's men a 2-0 win in the UEFA Champions League.

Prior to the European encounter Arsenal had fallen to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of West Brom to record their third Premiership loss of the season, and the capital side were struggling without their attacking talisman.

After rushing back prematurely from a groin injury, the newly crowned top Gunners goalscorer cemented his place in Arsenal's history, and, whilst denying that his refusal to enter into contract talks put his commitment in doubt, Henry revealed he was desperate to help pull the team out of their early-season slump.

"I had so much anger that I needed to help the team," said Henry.

"That's what I'm there for and I think I answered people who questioned whether I had the desire to play for Arsenal.

"Every time I wear the shirt I play with my heart and total commitment.

"I watched the team and I was biting my nails.

"It's hard when you see an opportunity when you think you can hit the back of the net and you're not there - it's very frustrating.

"I love to play football and all of the time I was just biting my nails.

"It was painful because I just want to be out there, helping the team."

Jose Antonio Reyes' injury handed Henry an unexpected chance to shine, and he took it with aplomb with a superb curler with the outside of the boot to equal Wright's record, and a neat second half finish to edge ahead of the Gunners legend.

After six weeks on the sidelines it was a surprise to see Henry make the trip to Prague, and the former Juventus star says that, although he originally felt unprepared to make an impact, his desire to spur his side on resulted in his match-winning performance.

"I wasn't even meant to travel and I didn't feel ready," Henry continued.

"But it's strange because sometimes you feel ready and you're not.

"Football is a strange sport, that's why we love it so much, but as soon as I stepped on to the pitch I was determined to give my best.

"I thought about pacing myself but I sprinted straight away, which was a bit crazy because I hadn't warmed up properly.

"The boss just told me to keep on running when I was on the pitch and that's what I did.

"Fortunately I didn't injure myself, I was determined to help the team."

Henry's feat of 186 strikes for Arsenal is even more impressive given that his unhappy time at Juventus was spent on the left wing, and during his time at Highbury Henry's all-round game and unselfish nature have prevented him being pigeon-holed as an out-and-out striker.

However, after securing his place as one of the club's all-time greats, Henry believes he has shown an aptitude for the art of goalscoring.

"The boss signed and knew me as a centre forward, but I had been playing as a winger, I hadn't been scoring as much and for the first two, three or maybe four years people were saying I wasn't a natural-born killer.

"I'm still not but I still enjoy scoring and I think I've shown I can do it."