Just remind us of that story.

Well, I will remind you the f- when he was actually sacked, I was at a restaurant where he was at actually, to be honest.

And [laughs] I actually remember going up to him, shaking his hand, and just...

He was having a good night, so it must've been a good payoff.

But, like, anyway, on, on that World Cup, yeah, it was, it was tough because I played every qualifier.

I played particularly well.

I was having a really good season, and it was really hard to actually understand why, you know, you don't get selected into a, a World Cup squad.

[laughs]

Mm.

But when you think of all the not playing in the Premier League, you know, big money move from Southampton, at Arsenal, all these things, there's all loads of eyes on you already, and even shoving yourself in front of the cameras at 16, no, I wouldn't do that.

I would take that, that player away.

You look at Max Domino at Arsenal, for instance, you don't really see much of him.

It's like they've seen what with me, happened with me, and luckily I turned out okay, but just let's do it a different way.

And obviously the child protection rules, that side of it as well, because even me, 16, I had to share a dressing room with- A first-team environment.

Yeah.

I could ride a motorbike.

Who are the closest challengers in your mind then, Theo, to Arsenal this season?

Well, always the unknown's always a scary place to be.

When you look at someone like a, a Xabi Alonso, Chelsea, I'm expecting them to be a different animal, to be honest.

When you look at the likes of the English core they're building with Cole Palmer, and of course Morgan Rogers, who we missed out on, sadly.

Uh, s- I'm still kind of upset about that.

However, I just feel, I think Chelsea will be in different.

Liverpool, I like Jota the way he plays.

Come on

And that's what I was saying before.

It's just second nature, isn't it? Like, it's every time you've got the ball, just run.

Like, it's fine.

I know what I'm doing.

And it's like JD's saying, it's always gonna be in the right space.

Won't have to break my stride, which is important.

That was really important for me.

So let's not start that again.

... as a manager, is he the same guy that he was back then?

then?Is he the same guy? Yeah, no, he is.

He's very intense, uh, and as well, he always gets you thinking differently.

And I always re-- I remember when he kind of stopped training, uh, one time when we weren't really performing at a level, and it was more on the fact the players had to hear a few truths.

And that's one thing as well at times, some players can't take the truth, I suppose, and that responsibility and that, to be accountable for the performances.

But he knew as a player, and you just knew after that moment that he was gonna be a manager.

Uh, and Arsene Wenger, uh, at the time was like, "The team are meant to be out at half ten, and we're still in the dressing room 'cause Mikel's talking to us as a player." But even when he...

So tell us, Theo, what will happen Sunday?

Give us an insight into what Arsene Wenger... was telling you at that time, and Thierry Henry, what you were trying to learn of him.

Well, even before the move, I'll give you a bit of context.

So I was with my academy graduates for many years, and the scary thing was, and actually the honest truth was, it was really tough.

I couldn't tell them that I was moving.

So it was really difficult to keep a story in.

Like these days, you get your phone, things happen, right? Social media, that's changed.

But I found it very difficult.

What is the difference at that level? What did you see from Thierry Henry that made him one of the finest players in the world in the last three

Mm-hmm.

Uh, and I felt that- that's where it was gonna be won.

Uh, and having said that, it just disappoints me when you spend that much money on a certain player that's going to be creative and be that ...

he loves to call them finishers or game changers at this moment in time, you- for me, you have to start these players because they're the ones that will take the risks that will be able to unlock defenses in a different well- different way, sorry.

And that's the problem with Arsenal don't do in these big games at this moment in time.

They want to stay in it, I understand that.

I- I get that.

Hmm.

Once.

Not once.

The difference with Madueke on that side, he was just playing with instinct.

He played to his strengths.

He didn't overthink things, and that's one thing with wingers they do too often now.

If you overthink things as a winger, you mess up.

I've been there.

I know that's like, that, those two things- Oh, God.