After receiving a hero's return at Arsenal, Thierry Henry exposed his former team's defensive deficiencies in helping the New York Red Bulls win the preseason Emirates Cup on Sunday.
All that spoiled Henry's homecoming was the referee denying him the chance to again pull on the Arsenal shirt he wore for eight years.
''They have some stupid rules but that's the way it is,'' he said. ''You've got to respect it right? I'm sure the fans would have loved that and I would have loved that.''
But had the request from Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger been accepted, the 33-year-old striker might not have been on the pitch to play a key part in the late equalizer for a 1-1 draw that gave the Red Bulls the trophy.
''I wanted him to play the last five minutes for us and he was desperate to do it,'' Wenger said. ''The referee stubbornly turned it down. I went even in to see the referee to ask him if he would allow him to play for us. But he said the rules are adamantly against it because one given player cannot play for two teams in the same game.''
Instead, Henry threaded the ball through to Roy Miller, whose cross-shot was then bundled into his own goal by Arsenal's Kyle Bartley in the 84th minute.
The Red Bulls, who have won just one of their last nine Major League Soccer matches, captured the Emirates Cup by topping the four-team standings having beaten Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 on Saturday.
''We had nine players out there today who had played back-to-back matches and that's normally our Achilles' heel,'' coach Hans Backe said. ''We could have lost six or seven nil. We could have embarrassed ourselves, but we worked really hard at our shape. This showed we can defend ... when we go back to the U.S. we get caught on the break like Arsenal do.''
Arsenal also crumbled on Saturday, blowing a 2-0 lead against Boca Juniors to draw 2-2.
So while Arsenal was booed off the pitch on Sunday, Henry was cheered by the home fans.
''It was kind of weird,'' Henry said. ''The fans were cheering me when I got the ball, cheering when I was on the (other) side ... it's nice coming back here. This place is amazing. I feel like I'm home.''
Henry is still Arsenal's record scorer with 226 goals in eight years before he left in 2007.
''They say great clubs never die, it looks like great players never die as well, because Thierry showed us today he is still top quality with his feet and with his head,'' Wenger said. ''He has still shown class for the goal, his pass was fantastic ... Overall he was the only dangerous player in their team.''
But Henry's return served as a reminder that Arsenal hasn't won a trophy since he left the club after two Premier League triumphs and a hat trick of FA Cup successes.
Now, Arsenal can't even win a friendly trophy it created.
''You have to put the (boos) into perspective,'' Wenger said. ''I can understand it but I don't think we need to put any extra pressure on us now.''
Arsenal's quest for a first Premier League title since 2004 begins in two weeks against Newcastle.
The Red Bulls will be hoping the results in London will help to kickstart their MLS season.
''We've had a really tricky season so far with six starters away for the Gold Cup and missing eight games in the league,'' Backe said. ''(This result) shows we can defend well and take that with us.''
