Thierry Henry, the former French national team and Arsenal striker, has candidly discussed his struggles with mental health, acknowledging that he believes he may have experienced depression throughout his career. In a career that was defined by its balletic grace and fearsome pace, Henry scored 228 goals for the Gunners over two spells in London and won three Premier League titles and four FA Cups. He also enjoyed success in Europe with Monaco, Juventus and Barcelona and claimed 51 international caps. He stepped away from playing at the end of his MLS stint with New York Red Bulls and will now focus on his role as pundit for Sky Sports.

Henry says he has been battling depression for most of his life and struggled to deal with it as a young player in a highly public world where criticism could be hurled at him at any moment. The 46-year-old, who is currently working on a book, said he was always “scared of failure” and that he would not be good enough to succeed.

The former Arsenal star began his career at Monaco, where he won the first of six Ligue 1 titles to etch himself into the pantheon of great French strikers alongside Zinedine Zidane. But he left the principality after a troubled year, and his subsequent move to Arsenal was not the break that he hoped for. Arsene Wenger gave him the chance to shine but he failed to replicate his club form with the national side and moved on to Barcelona, winning two La Liga crowns and the Champions League during his three-year stay at the Nou Camp.

A lucrative offer to play for the New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer saw him leave England for the United States and he scored 51 goals over the course of his time at the club, but it was not the fairy tale ending that he had envisaged. He was played out of position by Marcello Lippi and later Carlo Ancelotti and the experience damaged his self-confidence.

He returned to France and retired from international football, but he will not forget his time in the MLS as he believes it helped him find his purpose. Henry is now a motivational speaker and says the global lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic forced him to reflect on his life and how he has struggled to seek validation from people that were not in his immediate circle of friends and family. He is now determined to start a new chapter of his life as a man that embraces his own humanity rather than the persona he has built up in the public eye. He is also set to take up a coaching role with New York’s U23 squad, which is a step closer to achieving his dream of becoming a full-time coach.