Arsene Wenger Calms Talk of Thierry Henry Return for Arsenal

Arsene Wenger has disappointed Gunners fans worldwide by halting any talk of a potential Arsenal return for either Thierry Henry or Robert Pires, insisting the pair are strictly maintaining their fitness levels with the club.

Speculation was initially raised after the pair of former Arsenal stars were pictured training at London Colney in the past week.

Speaking via Rob Kelly of the official Arsenal website, Wenger is reported as saying: 

"

They like to come back to Arsenal, to practise. When they can join in, they do. They integrate well with the spirit of the team. Nothing more than that!

They have no real target to bring something, they just want to enjoy themselves and keep their fitness. Usually they don’t practise with the first team because they come in and work on fitness.

It is a little bit less competitive, [but] when we have some room we invite them to play with us but usually they train separately to us.

"

The manager also addressed rumours that Henry was being lined up for a coaching position at the Emirates Stadium, saying there's no truth to the matter, for now at least: 

"

No, at the moment he is invited just to practise when he wants. We have a big staff, a very competent one, and we have the right number to support the team to achieve the targets.

Thierry is a player, one day certainly it will be different, but at the moment no.

"

So, despite many North Londoners dreaming of one last glimpse of Henry in an Arsenal jersey, it appears neither he nor Pires will be rejoining their former club as part of the establishment anytime soon, although there's a lot to be said for what can come to be in the future.

Right now, Henry is still plying his trade in Major League Soccer and continues to thrive as an attacking centrepiece for the New York Red Bulls. In the past, he and other MLS talents have come to the English top flight on loan during their offseason, but no such possibility has been tipped to occur this winter.

During the 2011/12 campaign, Henry returned to the Emirates Stadium on loan and made seven appearances while back on loan at Arsenal, scoring two goals and making one assist across all competitions.

However, none of those outings came as part of the starting XI, begging the question as to whether the 36-year-old would still be able to keep up with the Premier League pace.

As things stand, Olivier Giroud is having his finest season in Arsenal colours, but can't be expected to start every game and currently has only Nicklas Bendtner as experienced striking cover.

Therefore, one might expect reinforcements to be made during the January transfer window, but it's doubtful that Henry figures in Wenger's plans.

Pires, on the other hand, hasn't been quite as involved at the top level in recent years but was recently reported by ESPN's Ian Holyman as being a possible participant in the Indian Super League organised for 2014:

"

I'm on the shortlist to go to India and I cannot wait to be there. The shortlist is what we would simply call a 'draft', just like the Americans do in basketball. The Indians use it for cricket. That's what they want to do with football. We'll see what happens, but it should start at the beginning of 2014.

"

From those words, it would appear the former French international is fully booked, at least for the time being, and the Gunners would have to get in line to secure his services on a coaching basis.

If Henry were to one day become a coach at the club, he would join a very exclusive group of people taking their first coaching position somewhere that already holds a statue in their image.  

For the time being, a statue is all Arsenal fans will be able to settle for, although the real deal could take up his post in the not-too-distant future.