Campbell Praises Arsenal Legend as Club Rediscovers Mental Fortitude

Arsenal legend Sol Campbell has praised the mental fortitude of Thierry Henry to comeback to Arsenal after achieving so much in his first spell at the club.

Henry, 34, returned to north London for a two-month loan spell earlier this season, scoring vital goals against Leeds and Sunderland.

And Campbell believes Henry had to overcome significant emotional barriers to return for a second spell at Arsenal, with the full knowledge that his earlier accomplishments could have been tarnished by the move.

"I spoke to him beforehand and he told me the Club were thinking about bringing him back," Campbell told the official Arsenal Web site.

"I had lunch with him and told him to go for it. I said, 'As long as people know you are coming back and helping out'. But he did more than help out really.

"He has shown great mental ability to come back and play so well. When he was called upon, he did his best - above and beyond really. It was fantastic."

And Campbell took time to commend Arsenal's remarkable run of form in recent weeks and believes their success is down to a renewed focus from the squad.

Monday's last-minute victory over Newcastle was Arsenal's fourth successive win from a losing position, a new Premier League record, and the club are now just one point behind Tottenham in the battle for third place.

"The lads have shown a lot of spirit. You have to get a bit of the rub of the green, but that tends to come when you start being bolder on the pitch," Campbell added.

"Gamble on your skill, gamble in the box, gamble in thinking, 'I am going to try this'. Start gambling your talent, basically. The more you bust a gut to win, the more you are going to see the crowd feed off that.

"You make your own luck, and against Newcastle there was a little deflection for the winning goal and the ball came to Vermaelen. But he was there because he busted a gut to get into the box."