Arsenal skipper Thierry Henry confirmed that he opened talks with the club board regarding a contract extension. "I've spoken briefly with the board and manager in the last week, but we still have things to discuss," Henry was quoted as saying by BBC Sport on Sunday. I just hope that all the discussions I have shown the club can match my sporting ambitions." The 28-year-old Frenchman, whose contract expires in 2007, played down rumours linking him with other top European clubs. He was repeatedly tipped to join Spanish Champions Barcelona or head to the Stadio Delle Alpi to re-join former Arsenal skipper Patrick Vieira in Juventus. "I see a lot of people talking about money and saying what we can afford, whatever - that is not my main concern," Henry said.
"I came into the sport to play football and enjoy it. That is my main concern. When I talk about sporting ambition, I mean my future in the game - nothing to do with money. "So there is still a lot to do. When I say the ball is in the board's court, I don't mean it in a bad way, I just mean I have said what my feelings are and we will see," he added. The energetic striker also insisted that he doesn't accept being confined to a certain deadline for signing the new extension deal "Whether the deal will be signed in the next few days, weeks, months, I really don't know - it depends how it goes," Henry insisted. Henry led Arsenal to a stunning 7-0 victory over Middlesbrough with a superb hat-trick on Saturday that saw him tie Cliff Bastin's club record of 150 league goals. Earlier this season, Henry became the club's all-time top scorer after breaking Ian Wright record of 185 goals in all competitions. Henry, a World Cup and European Cup winner, joined the Gunners from Juventus in August 1999 after a short and unsuccessful spell in the Serie A.
