Thierry Henry Questions Arsenal’s Trophy Drought Under Mikel Arteta

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has questioned the club’s lack of silverware in recent years under manager Mikel Arteta, despite consistent improvements and top-tier performances.

Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, Thierry Henry, who is a former Arsenal captain said the club have “underachieved” over the past three seasons and suggested that questions over the team’s progress are justified.

Arteta, 43, took the reins at Arsenal in December 2019 after serving as Pep Guardiola’s assistant at Manchester City.

While he made an immediate impact by guiding the Gunners to an FA Cup victory in his debut season, the club has since struggled to add to its trophy cabinet.

Despite finishing as Premier League runners-up for three consecutive seasons and showing promise in Europe, Arsenal have not reached a final in any major competition since 2020.

This season, they were eliminated in the semi-finals of both the UEFA Champions League and Carabao Cup.

“I’m not saying that I’m disappointed with Arsenal, but it’s normal that people are raising questions now about what the team is doing,” Henry said. “For the last three years Arsenal have been in a situation where they should have at least brought one cup or reached a final.”

Henry, who led Arsenal through one of the most successful periods in the club’s history, acknowledged that rebuilding a squad takes time. Still, he emphasized that by now, results should reflect the project’s maturity.

“It takes time and you have to give a manager time to be able to implement what he wants to do. But after three or four transfer windows, there should be progress in terms of silverware,” he said.

Henry also pointed to Manchester United as a benchmark. Despite recent struggles and heavy scrutiny, United have reached five finals and secured two trophies in the past five years—an achievement Arsenal have not matched.

“Manchester United have played in five finals in the last five years, the United that everyone laughs at—whereas for Arsenal in the last three years of building, they’ve not reached a final,” Henry noted.

Arsenal have averaged 82 points per season over the past three Premier League campaigns—numbers that reflect consistency, but not necessarily success when it comes to titles.