Thierry Henry: 'Tonight at Wembley, the whole world will be French'

France's all-time leading
goalscorer Thierry Henry said
"the whole world will be French"
when England play Les Bleus at
Wembley Stadium in an
international friendly on
Tuesday night.
Henry grew up in Paris, where
terrorists killed 129 people in a
series of coordinated attacks
just four days ago.
He wrote in his column for The
Sun that he expects fans to
band together.
"When the Twin Towers were
attacked on 9/11, everyone felt
American. When London was
devastated by the Tube attacks
in 2005, we all became British.
Tonight at Wembley, the whole
world will be French," the
former Arsenal great wrote.
"Friday's Paris atrocities have
united people from every part
of the planet. That solidarity will
be on show for everyone to see
this evening."
England fans will be encouraged
to join their French
counterparts in singing La
Marseillaise at Wembley and
the stadium's famous arch is lit
up with the tricolore in
solidarity.
"Who wins and who plays well
won't matter at all. It is all
about showing the terrorists
that we remain strong and
united," Henry wrote.
Prime Minister David Cameron
and Prince William are
expected to be in attendance
and police in London promise a
robust presence to reassure the
public.
The match has been the subject
of concern because the targets
in Paris included Stade de
France, where tens of
thousands were watching
Germany play France. Scotland
Yard says armed police officers
will be visible -- unusual in a
country where many officers
don't carry guns.
The lyrics of the French national
anthem will be displayed on the
big screens so that all fans can
join in the singing.
Wembley's giant arch will shine
in red, white and blue while the
French flag and national slogan
of 'Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite'
will be shown displayed on LED
screens on Wembley Way.
There will be a minute's silence
before kickoff and both teams
will wear black armbands to
remember the victims of
Friday's attacks.
The 38-year-old Henry
remembered Arsenal's
Champions League match after
the attacks in New York on
Sept. 11, 2001.
"I will never forget that Arsenal
were ordered to play their
Champions League game
against Real Mallorca just five
hours after the Twin Towers had
collapsed in New York. It was
the only time in my career that
we lost and I didn't care," he
said. "We played because we
had to but while I was physically
on the pitch, mentally I was on
the other side of the Atlantic
with all those people suffering
in America.
"We flew back to London that
night when all other planes had
been grounded and nobody was
even thinking about the result
of the match we had just
played.
"It will be the same feeling
tonight."