Arsenal’s Thierry Henry Dubs Team ‘Unforgettables’ as Double Glory Beckons

Thierry Henry created a viral moment Tuesday night during a CBS Sports interview with Bukayo Saka, telling the Arsenal winger after the team’s Champions League semifinal win over Atlético Madrid: “We were the Invincibles. You will be the Unforgettables.” The comment referenced Arsenal’s unbeaten 2004 Premier League title run.

Henry’s words carried weight as one of Arsenal’s greatest players, the leading scorer during the club’s 2003-04 unbeaten Premier League campaign, which remains its most recent league title.

Saka, who scored the decisive goal in the second leg at Emirates Stadium, and his teammates now have a clear path to greatness. If Arsenal can hold off Manchester City to win the Premier League and then defeat their Champions League final opponent in Budapest on May 30, they would achieve a feat surpassing any previous Arsenal side.

Arsenal have limited European success, with only the 1994 Cup Winners’ Cup and the 1970 Fairs Cup, both now defunct. Henry’s 2006 team came closest to winning the Champions League, losing to Barcelona in the final.

The 2006 final remains Arsenal’s only appearance in European football’s showpiece event and a source of deep regret for Henry. He missed a one-on-one chance early when the game was 0-0 and another opportunity in the second half while Arsenal led 1-0 despite playing with 10 men from the 18th minute after Jens Lehmann’s red card. Henry has said the game still gives him sleepless nights.

Saka and his teammates have the chance to erase that disappointment, and Henry’s comment appeared to be a symbolic passing of the torch. But success is not guaranteed: one slip in the league and Manchester City could take advantage. Arsenal know the title is in their hands: win their final three games, starting Sunday at West Ham, and they will claim the championship.

West Ham are fighting relegation and sit 18th for good reason. After that match, Arsenal host already-relegated Burnley and then visit Crystal Palace, who may be focused on their upcoming Conference League final three days later.

Arsenal’s run-in appears favorable, akin to their Champions League knockout draw of Bayer Leverkusen, Sporting Lisbon and Atlético Madrid — avoiding European superpowers. Arsenal earned that path by finishing first in the league phase with a perfect 8-0 record.

There is a sense of the stars aligning at Arsenal. After weeks of suffering, angst and fear of falling short since late March, the mood has shifted suddenly to greater faith and assurance. Seven days ago, after the first leg against Atlético, the mentality was more like a siege.

Manager Mikel Arteta criticized a clearly bad decision to overturn a penalty that would have given Arsenal a 2-1 lead in the first leg at Atlético. The match ended 1-1, a good result given Arsenal’s subpar performance. Prior to that, Arsenal struggled for creativity in a tense 1-0 home win over Newcastle.

The turning point came Saturday with a 3-0 home win over Fulham. The key observation was the calmness before and during the match, in contrast to previous games. Arsenal again scored in the ninth minute, but this time they did not retreat or show frayed nerves on the pitch or in the stands.

Arsenal were remorseless, playing with tempo. They missed chances and had a goal disallowed but maintained certainty. By halftime it was 3-0, a major improvement after scoring only six goals in their previous eight matches.

Fulham’s poor performance — their preparations disrupted by a sickness bug — helped, but Arsenal showed energy and freshness. Arteta credited five changes to the starting lineup. The biggest boost was Saka’s return from injury, with Riccardo Calafiori also back. Myles Lewis-Skelly started in midfield in place of Martín Zubimendi.

Lewis-Skelly has faced a difficult second senior season, with Arteta admitting he has been tough on the 19-year-old. Lewis-Skelly had a point to prove and did so against Fulham and Atlético. Meanwhile, Declan Rice has moved back to a defensive midfield role and demonstrated why he is a leading candidate for Footballer of the Year.

Arsenal carried the momentum from the Fulham win into the Atlético match, boosted further by Manchester City’s failure to win at Everton on Monday. Pre-match scenes included a mass fan welcome for the team bus outside Emirates Stadium with red flares. While not extraordinarily loud, it was a visual spectacle.

After the final whistle, Arteta led a group of players hand in hand across the pitch, visibly overflowing with adrenaline. It was hard to recall seeing him this happy. The gesture was another attempt to energize the crowd, though not all such efforts have worked recently — for example, his “bring your lunch” speech before a home loss to Bournemouth.

Arteta persists with these motivational tactics. Before the second leg against Sporting Lisbon he called for “no fear, pure fire.” He urged players to “define history” against Fulham and demanded they “go out there like beasts” before the Atlético second leg.

The celebratory scenes in the dressing room will be remembered by all who saw them, including Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay, who was a guest at the match. The challenge for Arsenal is to keep the momentum rolling.

“Sometimes you have these moments in the season where it shifts towards you and everyone has full belief that we can do it,” winger Leandro Trossard said. “That’s how it is at the moment.”