Alex Hleb has declared Arsenal a better team without Thierry Henry.

Belarus star Hleb said: "I know why we are so good, the explanation is quite simple.

"Until last summer, we had just played for Thierry Henry. He was running the show. Whenever I got the ball, I was looking up, 'where's Henry?'

"I did not dare to go for goal myself! And if once in a while I dared to pass the ball to someone else, he would shout, 'hey, I was free!' When he was on form, we won everything. When he was off form, we lost.

"That has all changed. We are not a one-man-band any more. Nobody complains when I risk some dribbling. That's the reason for our good performances - we were set free.

"When I learned that the boss had said this is the best Arsenal side he's coached I wanted to embrace the whole world. When Arsene Wenger says that, it is the biggest praise a team can earn.

"We are hurting after losing at Manchester United. Believe me, the pressure on us is really big. And I am talking about the pressure we put on ourselves.

"Everybody in the team is desperate to win the Champions League. But defeats like the one at United won't get us down - we are Arsenal, we don't know what fear is."