Thierry Henry: Arsenal legend reveals feelings ahead of UEFA Champions League final - ‘It's going to be a horrible night for me’

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Perhaps no one knows better about the full range of emotions a UEFA Champions League final can conjure than Arsenal great and CBS expert Thierry Henry.

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Henry has been on the winning side, having triumphed with Barcelona in 2009, and has been on the losing side after Arsenal suffered heartbreak in 2006.

And ahead of Saturday's final between Arsenal and Paris-Saint Germain in Budapest, live on TNT Sports and HBO Max, the Frenchman said it will be a "horrible night" watching his former team take to the field in arguably their biggest game in 20 years.

"I'm not afraid to say it's going to be a horrible night for me. Usually, when I go to Champions League finals, my team isn't there. I'm very relaxed, no matter what happens, I do my job, I watch the game normally, without any ulterior motives," Henry told Eurosport France's Maxime Aubin.

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"It's going to be completely different this time. I'll obviously remain professional in what I have to do, but to be honest, I'll feel totally different after the match, depending on whether they win or lose."

Arsenal come into Saturday's final with a Premier League title already in their back pocket after sewing up first place before the final round of fixtures.

It allowed manager Mikel Arteta to heavily rotate his team to face Crystal Palace with one eye on the game against PSG.

With Arsenal hunting for their first Champions League title and PSG seeking to defend the crown they won for the first time last year, Henry explained that the result will not define anyone involved in the final in Hungary.

"When you think about finals, whether it's the 2006 World Cup [when France lost on penalties to Italy] or any other lost final, you always say to yourself: 'I lost this one, sure, but I've won others,'" Henry said. "You don't dwell on what could have been.

"It was a fact of the game to be forced to play against Barcelona [in 2006], without being the favourites, down to 10 men after just a few minutes. But you can't go back in time.

"Today, I just hope that if Arsenal manages to win the Champions League, they will go down in history as the unforgettable ones. Because we've obviously never won that trophy."

'Beauty or the Beast'

Arsenal and PSG enter the final boasting vastly different footballing styles, both of which have brought about success.

Arsenal have relied upon a stout defence, efficiency from set pieces and the odd spark of attacking genius to get them to where they are.

PSG, meanwhile, have wowed with their attacking philosophy, most evidenced by their 5-4 victory over Bayern Munich in the first leg of their semi-final tie, a game which has gone down as one of the best in the competition's history.

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But no matter the style, Henry believes either can be productive in the right setting.

"It all depends on which side you're on, and what you consider Beauty or the Beast," the 48-year-old said.

"Some like to control the game without the ball, others prefer to control it with it, and react immediately to win it back as soon as they lose it. I've seen teams succeed with both styles. This image needs to be nuanced; it's all a matter of preference."

And for Arteta, this season has been a crowning moment for the Spaniard, having come close to titles on multiple occasions over his six years at Arsenal.

He has the chance to write himself into the club's history books on Saturday, but Henry remains adamant that the final is "not about silencing the critics".

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"People judge what they see, and they have the right to do so. It took us seven years and significant investment to achieve this level of performance," he said.

"If you look at some clubs today, they don't give their managers that time to show what they're capable of.

"Nothing is built overnight. Mikel Arteta had that time and the money to bring in the players he wanted. He was given the resources. And now, he's delivering. And people are recognising that, which is great."

How to watch the UEFA Champions League final

You can watch the Champions League final on TNT Sports and HBO Max.

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