ARSENE WENGER snubbed four offers from Barcelona for Thierry Henry before selling his star striker.
The Spaniards insist it was only HenryÂ’s determination to leave Arsenal which forced Wenger to change his mind.
Barca financial director Ferran Soriano has lifted the lid on the extraordinary series of events which saw Henry move to the Nou Camp.
Soriano insists it was Henry who made the first contact and Wenger was bitterly opposed to the £16million deal.
And Soriano has published his diary to show Henry did all the running.
The hitman, 29, was increasingly frustrated by the GunnersÂ’ failure to challenge Manchester United and Chelsea for the Premier League title.
And he could see no end to the decline after Wenger said he was looking for only one or two new players this summer.
But the final straw for the French striker came when vice-chairman David Dein left after a bitter boardroom war.
Within two weeks of Dein’s departure, Henry knew it was also time for him to quit — and that he made a huge mistake rejecting a move to Barca last summer and committing the rest of his career to Arsenal.
Here Soriano shows how the deal unfolded:
EARLY MAY: Henry sends a message that he is interested in coming.
Wenger will not sell but we arrange to meet at Champions League final.
MAY 24: At a meeting between Wenger and Barca director Txiki Begiristain, Wenger insists Henry is unsure if he wants to stay but Arsenal will not sell.
But in the next weeks Henry tells Wenger his wish is to join us.
JUNE 18: A three-hour meeting at Wenger’s house ends in failure. We offer £12m, they want £24m.
JUNE 21: New offer is rejected. At 11pm there is a proposition which Arsenal find acceptable. At 1am our lawyer sends a concrete offer.
JUNE 22: Deal agreed by 1pm but contract is not complete. We are allowed to meet Henry.
I realise how much he wants to sign for us. He was excited like a little boy, not like a big star.
JUNE 23-25: Lawyers sort out all contracts. On June 25 Henry is a Barca player.
Many times I thought the deal was done and many times I thought we would never sign him. In the end, we did it.