Theiry Henry to Barclona

Arsenal's French striker Thierry Henry has signed for Barcelona.The 29-year-old profilic strikerwill signed a four-year contract with Barca for an estimated transfer fee of 16 million pounds

Barcelona were denied their third straight Primera Liga title on the final day of the season last Sunday, losing out to arch-rivals Real Madrid on head-to-head results.A great deal of soul-searching has gone on since then after a season short on silverware, and the club has moved quickly to strengthen the squad and appease the fans.

Henry was the focal point at Arsenal but Barca have an array of attacking options and he must find a place in a forward line that already includes Cameroon striker Samuel Eto'o, Brazilian Ronaldinho and Argentina winger Lionel Messi.The Frenchman turned Barca down and signed a four-year contract with Arsenal after the London side lost to Frank Rijkaard's team in the Champions League final last May.

His change of mind will be a blow to Arsenal, with Henry having been their top scorer in four of the five Premier League seasons from 2001-6, even though he spent much of the last campaign sidelined by injury.