Thierry Henry has warned Arsenal that they are 'not at the level' of Champions League final opponents Paris Saint-Germain. The two teams will meet in Budapest later this month, as Mikel Arteta's side face the French giants with the aim of being crowned European champions for the first time in their history.
Arsenal's path to the final
Arsenal beat Atletico Madrid 2-1 on aggregate to book their ticket to the Hungarian capital before PSG edged Bayern Munich 6-5 in a barnstorming semi-final tie. After the holders sent a reminder of their quality in Wednesday's 1-1 draw away to Bayern, Henry confessed that Arsenal face a 'very difficult' task.
Asked who he would have preferred his former team to face out of PSG and Bayern, the Gunners legend replied on CBS Sports: 'We're not in a position to pick and choose. We're not at the level of those guys yet, so you have to be humble with it. I'm so happy we're in the final, let's see what we can do against this team because that's an outstanding team (PSG). Stay in your lane, we're not here to pick and choose, let's just hope we can beat PSG, but it's going to be very difficult.'
PSG's dominance and Arsenal's hopes
Luis Enrique's men ended their own long wait to win the competition last season, hammering Inter Milan 5-0 in the final. Now Arsenal, who could be Premier League champions by the time they arrive at the Puskas Arena on Saturday, May 30, will hope that it is their turn to make history.
Having been part of the Arsenal team that lost the club's only other Champions League final in 2006, Henry added: 'I woke up with a smile this morning because it's been 20 years since we got to the final. To be in a position to compete for the Premier League, it's been 22 years since we won it as well. We still haven't lost in Europe [this season] and we're not conceding many goals, that has to count for something. PSG, though, will have the experience of winning it and they won't have any fear.'
'Hopefully, we go there and be brave but we have to beat the defending champions so it won't be easy, we know that. I'm usually not too nervous but I think I will be nervous for that final because they could do something I couldn't do myself. You want your team to win and experience that. Hopefully, it's going to happen but look at how PSG played tonight, they can kill you in both ways, by scoring more goals than you and by neutralising you. The best team on the night and in the tie won and they went about it in a different way against Bayern.'
'They have everything they need but Arsenal have been resilient and when we do create we score goals. It will be difficult but let's see.'
