Wenger praises saviour Henry

Wenger has always held Henry in high esteem

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes Thierry Henry is Europe's best striker after his goal propelled the London club into the second phase of the Champions League.

Henry's strike in injury-time gave Arsenal a 3-1 win over Real Mallorca and ensured they would advance ahead of the Spanish club.

Wenger said Henry was better than Manchester United's Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy who was called the best hitman in Europe by Sir Alex Ferguson.

"I don't agree with Ferguson," said Wenger. "They are two great strikers but Thierry is top, top class.

I'm very pleased with the performance and the resilience we showed

Arsene Wenger

"I would not swap him for anybody and I want to keep this whole squad together.

"We'll gain a lot from getting through to the second round in the Champions League again, because this has been a much tougher group than many people thought."

Wenger said the value of Henry's strike could not be underestimated.

"At 2-1 we needed the third goal and that's why I put on Kanu in the last few minutes - we are more happy trying to chase a goal than keeping hold of a result.

"We have to do better in that way but overall I'm very pleased with the performance and the resilience we showed."