Arsenal starlet Theo Walcott says the return of Thierry Henry from Barcelona would be a retrograde step.

He told the Sunday Mirror : "I was awe-struck. It was my first day at Arsenal and I was only 16. I saw Thierry at the training ground and I got a photographer to take a picture of us. I even got him to sign it for me!

"But I think we have blossomed without him this season. Some players have come out of his shadow."