'We have to make sure we go on'

While acknowledging that Arsenal FC have made history by reaching the UEFA Champions League semi-finals for the first time, captain Thierry Henry believes the English side's achievement will be quickly forgotten should they fail to overcome Villarreal CF in the last four.

Unbeaten record
Arsène Wenger's team have remained unbeaten in their ten matches in this season's competition – conceding only two goals, and none in their last eight games. They saw off nine-time European champions Real Madrid CF in the last 16 before defeating Italian title-holders Juventus to finally progress past the quarter-finals at the third attempt. Those statistics make them many people's favourites when Villarreal visit Highbury on Wednesday, yet Henry is by no means satisfied.

'Win the thing'
"We've created a bit of history, but it's not the kind of history we want," he said. "Of course it's very special as Arsenal have never been this far before, but we want to go on and win the thing. It's great for the fans and the club itself, but we have to make sure we go on. I think the only players I've played with at Arsenal who have won the Champions League are [Nwankwo] Kanu and Marc [Overmars, both from the AFC Ajax team that overcame AC Milan in 1995] so we all have that hunger."

Highbury hurrah
The fixture will also be Highbury's final European game before Arsenal move to a new stadium this summer, and Henry admits that, like his manager, he feels a special bond with the ground. "It's difficult for me to put into words what Highbury has meant to me," he said. "It's an extraordinary stadium, people talk about the crowd and the ground itself but for me the most important thing is the turf, which is always perfect. My goalscoring record there is really good. It's a small pitch and normally I need space to run but I just feel at home there. I've got great memories from over the years and you can't think about Arsenal without thinking of Highbury."

Vibrant atmosphere
Henry's focus switches back to the task in hand, however, as he adds: "That will be something to talk about after the match. Against Madrid and Juventus the atmosphere was really good and we want something similar against Villarreal." The 28-year-old French international has great respect for the Spanish club, who in their inaugural UEFA Champions League campaign have advanced from the third qualifying round to the semi-finals. "In their first season Villarreal have done the same as us, as we're both in the semi-finals for the first time," said. "Clubs like Madrid have a great history, but you cannot take away from what Villarreal have achieved. People might assume we're favourites, but we don't see it like that."

Riquelme threat
A keen student of the game, the forward is fully aware of the tactics the opposition will employ and is particularly wary of the threat posed by Juan Román Riquelme. "Villarreal are a compact team, they defend well and protect the back four. They have some good players, like Diego Forlán and José María Romero, and I've followed Riquelme for a long time. I thought he was immense when he was at [CA] Boca Juniors and he's a pretty special player. When he's on song, Villarreal are on song." Arsenal will hope the Argentinian playmaker does not so much as clear his throat on Wednesday night.