After Real Madrid’s defeat against Arsenal at the Santiago Bernabéu (1–2) in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-finals, Thierry Henry did not hold back when criticising three of Carlo Ancelotti’s key players. As always, the former Gunner spoke frankly, blaming Real Madrid’s three key forwards.
Having convincingly won the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final last week (3–0), Arsenal completed the job on Wednesday evening at the Bernabéu. In their own fortress, the Madrid side were unable to cope with Mikel Arteta’s men, who were clearly the better team. At the end of the match, the English side secured a 2–1 victory and booked their place in the semi-finals of the competition, where they will face PSG. While Thibaut Courtois quickly pointed to the reasons behind Madrid’s failure without naming names, Thierry Henry was much more direct in his assessment.
Thierry Henry spills everything
Speaking on CBS Sport, where he has been working as a pundit for several months, the former French international and ex-Arsenal player expressed disappointment with Carlo Ancelotti’s choices. “I wanted to see what Ancelotti would do this season, because of the system and the players up front, along with the team’s overall balance. In the Champions League, among the bottom five in terms of distance covered per match… there are three Real Madrid players,” revealed Thierry Henry, clearly pleased with the qualification of his former club Arsenal.
Speaking about the three players who have run the least in the Champions League this year, we find Kylian Mbappé, Vinicius Junior, and Rodrygo Goes. Unfortunately, these three players — now under heavy criticism — are the key figures in Ancelotti’s system. On Wednesday night, the Italian manager started all three of them against the Gunners. In this match, only Vini made a notable impact in attack. Rodrygo, who has been struggling for weeks, contributed more defensively than offensively. In fact, he was the first player to be substituted.
The contrast between Thierry Henry’s comments and Carlo Ancelotti’s words
As for Kylian Mbappé — who has been singled out as Real Madrid’s main issue by Samir Nasri — he failed to impress either in attack or in defence. Booed by the Bernabéu crowd as he left the pitch with an injury, the 26-year-old forward did not put in the necessary effort to help his team. In any case, the damage is done, and things will have to be rebuilt for next season. With a team built around individual talents and no clear tactical identity from the manager, Florentino Pérez must step in and make bold decisions.
“Analysing the match today wouldn’t be fair — we need to accept this result and take the blows. What I told the players is to keep their heads up. We’ve done very well in this competition in previous years. This year, it didn’t go our way — in sport, that can happen. There are no invincible teams. In terms of attitude, the team gave everything it had. We couldn’t always outperform the opposition,” said Carlo Ancelotti after the 2–1 defeat to Arsenal.
If the 65-year-old manager believes his players gave their all, while Thierry Henry and many others disagree, it’s clear that the coaching staff’s vision no longer aligns with the demands of elite-level football. Until Real Madrid can count on players capable of running and playing as a unit, they won’t be returning to the top of European football any time soon. It’s now up to Florentino Pérez to act swiftly to prevent a downward spiral.
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