Don't expect to see Thierry Henry smiling on the pitch these days.
With Arsenal about to say farewell to its Premier League title, the French striker has a moody demeanor, even when he's stroking the ball into the net.
Instead of waving his arms and grinning from ear to ear, Henry tends to jog quietly away, take the applause of the crowd and teammates and go to say thanks to the player who provided the pass.
It has become something of a tiresome ritual. But Henry explains that he's not trying to be irritating.
"If you ask the guys in the dressing room they'll say I'm always laughing," Henry said on the eve of Arsenal's Champions League game today.
"If I'm on the pitch you don't often see my teeth."
Henry puts it down to his strong feelings of self-criticism and his yearning to get better. As a two-time runner up in the FIFA world player of the year poll, he still has some work to do.
"You can always progress but no one can ever be the best. To me, the best is a bit difficult to define," said Henry, who tops the Premier League scorers' list with 22 goals this season but has been less productive in the Champions League.
"That's why you can always trying to improve. To reach it is practically impossible, apart from Michael Jordan in basketball."
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