Thierry and team spirit did it: Vieira

Arsenal skipper Patrick Vieira said a combination of team spirit and the brilliance of Thierry Henry had delivered the Premiership title to ...

Arsenal skipper Patrick Vieira said a combination of team spirit and the brilliance of Thierry Henry had delivered the Premiership title to Highbury.

Speaking after a 2-2 draw at North London rivals Tottenham on Sunday put the Gunners out of Chelsea’s reach, a jubilant Vieira said the close bonds in the squad had enabled Arsenal to bounce back from the trauma of throwing away the title last season.

‘‘There is such a good spirit in the team and I think that over the whole season we were the best team and we deserved this title. We wanted to do it all together. We really enjoyed ourselves on the pitch and outside as well. Every day in training we have been working really hard and in the end we won it.’’

Vieira admitted, however, that the brilliance of Henry, who has scored 29 goals in Arsenal’s 34 Premiersip matches this season, had given the team an added edge. ‘‘It is a team game but without Thierry it would be more difficult. I think this year he has been tremendous, like in the last two games (against Liverpool and Leeds). When we were a bit tired and we needed someone to do something special, Thierry always stepped forward.’’ Arsenal’s next target is to go through the whole league campaign unbeaten, a feat that will require them to avoid defeat against Birmingham, Portsmouth, Fulham and Leicester. But Vieira made it clear that the club’s ambitions extend beyond that, particularly after the disappointment of missing out on a great chance to win this season’s Champions League.