Vieira drops in to watch as King Henry holds court

THIERRY HENRY impressed his former Highbury colleague Patrick Vieira by inspiring Arsenal back to their best form in Wednesday’s four-goal demolition of Portsmouth.

Vieira was making his first return to his former club following a €20 million summer move to Juventus and might have expected to see a club in crisis after their recent shaky form and reports of player unrest.

Henry could be following Vieira out of the exit door to Barcelona in the summer and has sacrificed his own game for the good of the team in recent matches, according to manager Arsene Wenger.

But it was all happy families after Henry’s goals helped Arsenal to score all four in the first half against Portsmouth and they all had a friendly reunion with Vieira afterwards.

“It was nice to see Patrick after the game,” said Henry. “I would have liked to see him on the pitch but he’s at Juve now and doing well.”

Arsenal moved back into the top six following this impressive performance and Monday’s win at Charlton. Next up is a New Year’s Eve trip to Aston Villa and Henry added: “The desire is back and the commitment. I’ve said it many times when we play one- and two-touch football it’s another story.

“With injuries it hasn’t been easy for us. But that’s how it is sometimes and you have to show your character.

“It takes time to come back but now let’s see what we can do. It will not be an easy game at Villa, but we need to try and go on a run now.”

Henry was also delighted to have Dennis Bergkamp restored as a strike partner on Wednesday after manager Wenger has recently been bolstering his midfield.

“It was good to get back to how we played against Portsmouth,” Henry said. “Lately we have been playing a different formation to what we are used to. We played like that against Ajax, Newcastle, Chelsea and again at Charlton. It is new for me; I’m used to having someone by me in a more direct shape.

“It’s not really my type of game, but I’ll do my best for the team.”

Wenger explained that with young midfielders such as Mathieu Flamini, 21, and Cesc Fabregas, 18, trying to replace Vieira he has felt the need to deviate from his normal 4-4-2 style.

“That is how I ideally like my teams to play,” Wenger said, “but sometimes we have to change things and sometimes players have to make sacrifices for the good of the team.

“We have looked like scoring well in our recent games, but have been a bit unlucky so I am delighted to see Thierry scoring again and I can see confidence running through the squad again.”

The only bad news for Arsenal was a groin injury sustained by midfielder Gilberto. He faces a fitness test ahead of tomorrow’s lunchtime trip to Aston Villa. Dutch striker Robin Van Persie, however, should be fit for a recall.