Arsenal legend snubs Thierry Henry as he names the best he ever played with for the Gunners

Former Arsenal star Ray Parlour has said that Thierry Henry was only the second-best player he’s played with during his time with the Gunners.

Parlour was part of Arsenal’s famous double-winning sides of 1997/98 and 2001/02, as well as the ‘Invincibles’ of 2003/04, who went the entire Premier League season unbeaten.

MORE: Arsenal and Spurs both hope existing relationships will help them secure Premier League star on a free

However, the former Arsenal player has singled out Dennis Bergkamp as the player who he thinks was the best player he’s ever played alongside, with Henry coming a close second behind the Dutch legend.

“The best player, it’s got to go down to two players, either Henry or Dennis Bergkamp,” Parlour told Sky Sports, as quoted by the Daily Mirror.

“Henry was amazing, what he achieved at Arsenal. When he first turned up he couldn’t hit a barn door, it was seven games no scoring goals, we thought ‘we can’t win the league with Thierry’.

“We’d just lost Nicolas Anelka who was a brilliant player but I’d have to pick Dennis, because he changed the attitude a lot with the British players with his training methods, professionalism was first class.

“He used to stay behind training and practice on his own. And we used to think ‘well hang on a minute, shouldn’t we be staying behind and doing a bit extra?’

“He influenced a lot but what a special player as well.

“Dennis was the one that would always be in the right place at the right time when you were playing with him. He always read your mind.

“If I had a situation where I only had one pass, Dennis would read that and peel off the centre half and there he was picking the ball up in a dangerous area.

“So I think Dennis was a cut above everyone at that time. But Thierry would go very, very close for being the best as well.”

It’s certain that both Henry and Bergkamp were top-class players for Arsenal, but the Dutchman has indeed been one of the best players to have graced the Premier League.

Despite Thierry Henry’s staggering goal-scoring record, the genius of Bergkamp on the pitch and the way the Dutchman played and conducted the attack for the Gunners in his time in North London is sure to be held in high regard by Arsenal fans and Parlour’s statements come as no surprise given the Dutch forward’s class.