Henry Flags Arsenal's Creative Shortage as Potential Champions League Stumbling Block

Thierry Henry has pinpointed a chink in Arsenal's armour that could yet haunt them in their Champions League push, despite the Gunners grinding out a crucial away win in Portugal.

The Frenchman's concern centres on Arsenal's creative output. While Kai Havertz's late strike sealed a 1-0 victory over Sporting on Tuesday, the match itself was a fairly sterile affair – one that looked destined for a goalless stalemate given the shortage of genuine attacking fluency on display.

Speaking on CBS Sports ahead of the quarter-final first-leg encounter, Henry acknowledged Arsenal's considerable strengths. "We know their biggest strength already, they are strong as a team and very solid," he explained. "For me they are the most solid team in the Champions League. We also know about the set-pieces – people are crying about that but it's a part of the game and a big advantage for Arsenal because they're pretty good at it."

Yet the former Gunners favourite identified a potential vulnerability. "But if the defence doesn't work I don't think we are creating enough at times to be able to hurt teams and that might be an issue," Henry cautioned.

After the Portuguese triumph, Henry struck a more pragmatic note: "It's better than coming back with a 0-0 obviously! There wasn't much in the game or a lot of creativity but they did what they had to do. They won away from home, let's see what happens at the Emirates."

Arsenal's winning goal arrived through a combination of substitutes – Gabriel Martinelli's introduction proving decisive before Havertz applied the finishing touch. Manager Mikel Arteta was full of praise for his bench options post-match, emphasising their impact throughout the campaign.

"It's been the story of the season, how important the finishers have been for us, to achieve what we want," Arteta reflected. "And today, all of them – Gabi came on and made a huge impact; Kai the same; Max the same. So we really need that, and we're really happy with that."

The Spaniard also highlighted the magnitude of securing victory on hostile territory, particularly against opponents who had strung together an impressive 16-game unbeaten run at home. "It's very difficult to win away from home in the Champions League and certainly against a team that have won 16 games in a row at home, so that tells you what we've done," he noted.

Arteta acknowledged Arsenal hadn't been at their slickest in the final third. "We had moments where we were very, very dominant, and we had our chances, we lacked certain threat in and around the box – we needed to be more efficient and crisper with our last pass, and as well we needed David twice to make a save to help us to win."

With the return leg at the Emirates to come, Arteta made clear there's plenty of work still to do. "One hundred percent and the players know that. They know how tough it's going to be now at Emirates Stadium, and we'll be fully ready for that," he insisted. He also paid tribute to the travelling support: "The supporters were exceptional again, thank you so much for following all the way here, and being with the team. We're very happy to give them the victory."