‘I learned a little there’ reveals Nicklas Bendtner as he lifts lid on furious bust-up with Arsenal legend Thierry Henry
NICKLAS BENDTNER has lifted the lid on a furious bust-up he had with Arsenal legend Thierry Henry.
Bendtner, 36, was a youth player in the Gunners set-up at the time.
PA:Press AssociationNicklas Bendtner recalled an argument he had with Thierry Henry in training[/caption]
AP:Associated PressBendtner felt it was unfair he was singled out for an error Henry had also made moments earlier[/caption]
The Dane recalled how the incident was sparked when he was called out for a training match error after Henry had been spared criticism for the same mistake moments earlier.
Speaking to Offside, via Tribal Football, he said: “Thierry and I played on each of our teams in an 11 against 11, and a mistake was made by him.
“It was overlooked by the coach, and I then made the same mistake, which was then called out.
“And in the meantime, I had started to shout a bit and say that it wasn’t quite fair.
“It wasn’t quite in a calm way.
“There was a bit of expletives being shouted and so on, where Henry then walked across the pitch and just stood and shouted into my head.
“And I shouted back a bit while the others stood and said: ‘Nicklas, you just have to be quiet and that’s now.’
“I learned a little there.”
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Henry would go on to leave Arsenal for Barcelona in 2007, the year Bendtner made his own leap into the first team following a loan transfer to Birmingham the year before.
Bendtner played 171 times under legendary boss Arsene Wenger, scoring 47 goals and adding 22 assists.
He retired in 2020 and has undergone a stunning body transformation.
But the French ace was not the only former team-mate he fell out with, famously feuding with Emmanuel Adebayor, whom he labelled an “odd fish”.
Bendtner recalled in his 2020 book: “A new set of rules apply when I return from a loan season at Birmingham City.
“Like taking off your outdoor footwear before coming inside. That’s one that Emmanuel Adebayor is really into.
“I’ve been given a locker right next to him because I’ve been given squad number 26, while he plays with 25 on his back.
“The man from Togo with his long, thin braids is an odd fish who takes some things more seriously than everyone else put together.
“When he’s mucking around himself it’s another story entirely. One morning he’s put on my training kit and put his own in my place.
“When I discover this, he whispers to me with a shake of his head: ‘Then you’ll just have to use mine instead, Nicklas. It’s too late to change now.’
AFPBendtner famously clashed with Emmanuel Adebayor in the 2008 League Cup semi-final[/caption]
“‘Nicklas’, ‘Nicklas’, always with ‘Nicklas’. He uses my name as if he were talking to a small child, and it triggers something in me.
“Maybe it’s a culture clash — the Africans mostly stick together. On the other hand, I get along pretty well with Emmanuel Eboue and Kolo Toure. It’s only Adebayor I can’t stand.”
Following a 2008 League Cup semi-final against Tottenham, he added: “Tottenham again, in the semi-final of the Carling Cup.
“After drawing the first leg 1-1 at the Emirates, we’re 4-0 down. Arsene Wenger sends Eduardo and Adebayor on.
“On the way past me, Adebayor shouts that it’s my fault he has to come on and waste his energy: ‘I’m here because you’re playing like s***.’
“It’s not especially encouraging, and shortly after when we win a corner, we both seek out the back post. There’s a lot of pushing and jostling, and suddenly we’re fighting each other.
It’s not especially encouraging, and shortly after when we win a corner, we both seek out the back post. There’s a lot of pushing and jostling, and suddenly we’re fighting each other.
Nicklas Bendtner On Adebayor
“We push back and forth while the Tottenham players watch in puzzlement. Afterwards, Adebayor claims I gave him the finger, but I don’t remember that.
“What I do remember is him sticking his head forward. That’s the thing with him. He behaves illogically. Completely unpredictably.
“I don’t know if it’s totally deliberate, but it feels like a headbutt right on the bridge of my nose. The blood gushes out and my nose swells up. As if it’s not big enough already.
“William Gallas rushes over and pulls us apart. But Adebayor isn’t done with me. He has to be escorted away while the referee books him.
“When the final whistle is blown, our arch-rivals have won 5-1. It’s our biggest derby defeat in an eternity, and no one on the team can bear it.
“Of course, personally I blame Adebayor, which is probably overdoing it.
“But I really want to get hold of him for a quiet tete-a-tete, and I guess the feeling is mutual, because one of the coaching staff has to hold him back in the players’ tunnel.
“When we finally clash in the dressing room, we have a lot of s*** to say to each other. Things I wouldn’t be able to utter 12 years later.
“Neither of us is holding back, and it has consequences. The boss fines us both two weeks’ wages.”
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