Peaks of achievement also serve to throw the troughs into sharp relief. And so, in a season that has been characterised by inconsistency for Arsenal, the indomitable display of team cohesion that conquered Real Madrid is also a source of frustration for Thierry Henry.

The Arsenal captain proved with his remarkable individual goal that he is capable of leading by example but Henry appears irritated by the serial lapses of concentration and composure in his young team-mates that have hindered Arsenal's campaign this year. In times of difficulty against Liverpool and Bolton, Arsenal were drawn into launching the ball forward for Emmanuel Adebayor, the target man they acquired last month. But that desperate tactic is counter-productive for a team that in the past has achieved so much by adhering to more cerebral principles.

"Against Madrid so many times, even under pressure, we were passing the ball and trying to keep the ball on the ground," said Henry. "Heading the ball is not really my game and therefore it was a bit easier for me. At some times and for some reason, in big games and big environments, it helps to show where we are. I think today the young players showed some great composure.

"The most important thing is that when you play in the Champions League or any competition away from home you cannot be scared, you have to play football. We were playing football and therefore I received the ball in better positions on the ground. That's why I've said so many times, that in good or bad moments, we need to play as a team."

Arsenal's success at the Bernabeu was based on mazy movement and cleverly executed through balls into the wide gaps left by a careless Madrid team. The nine-times European champions were more complicit in their own destruction than was to be expected.

It would, though, be to put too much of a spin on Henry's words to suggest that, with Madrid's La Liga rivals Barcelona seeking to sign him, he feels his time in England is spent. But the Gunners will be able to ride the crest of Tuesday's wave only until the first whistle of their Premiership match at Blackburn on Saturday, where they will be pressured at every turn.

Henry refused to be triumphalist on Tuesday. "It was indeed a great night, but we need to keep our feet on the ground," he said. "It's a great result to start the game at Highbury, but we need to stay calm. I've seen so many things in my career in football and we need to stay calm and focused. If we play the same type of game then it might be okay, but at the moment nothing has been done."

Though word had evidently reached them that Arsenal can be bullied out of their stride, Madrid are poor practitioners of defending's darker arts. The result seems to have reverberated around the home dressing room at the Bernabeu, the Arsenal captain's magical goal apparently having taken a psychological toll. "We did everything to try and stop Henry," said the centre-back Alvaro Mejia. "We tried to push him, pull him and we tried to kick him but nothing worked. He was unstoppable. I've never seen anything like it."

Mejia applauded Arsenal's own defensive organisation and counter-attacking football. In recent years, that has been the key to winning the Champions League, with Liverpool, Porto and Milan triumphant in the three seasons since a Zinedine Zidane wonder goal won it for Madrid.

Now, having achieved six wins and a draw from seven Champions League matches this season, some at Arsenal might feel that this could be their year, though they will not admit it. "I don't want to say whether it's going to be our year to win it, not yet anyway," said Freddie Ljungberg.

"We have played really well in the Champions League. It's a bit more open in Europe and maybe it suits us well."

The Premiership, though, is the gateway to Europe and if, as Arsene Wenger desires, Henry is to commit to his club beyond his current contract, Arsenal must somehow force a way in.