"Not at the level of Anelka" - Former Barcelona striker claims Arsenal legend Thierry Henry was not better than Chelsea great Nicolas Anelka

Former Chelsea and Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o has made a surprising claim that Arsenal legend Thierry Henry was not at the level of his France teammate Nicolas Anelka.

In a leaked video recently posted by Footballogue (via GOAL), the Cameroon international was heard saying:

"I think Thierry Henry was not at the level of Anelka. Titi was good, but I knew players... I preferred other players. In any case at my level, no."

Eto'o played alongside both the former French forwards. Anelka was at Real Madrid between 1999 and 2000, the same time that the 41-year-old was under contract with Los Blancos.

However, Eto'o spent most of his time on loan at Mallorca during that period, spending just six months with Anelka at the Madrid-based club.

Henry, on the other hand, was part of the Barcelona team with Eto'o that won the UEFA Champions League in the 2008/09 season.

In all, the duo spent two years together at the Catalan giants between 2007 and 2009 before Eto'o left for Inter Milan.

Anelka and Henry played together for France quite a few times. While the former made 123 appearances for Les Blues, scoring 51 goals in them, the latter played 69 matches for his national side and scored 14 goals.

How Chelsea great Anelka and Arsenal & Barcelona legend Thierry Henry fared in their club careers

Thierry Henry represented the likes of AS Monaco, Juventus, Arsenal, and Barcelona during his career among other clubs. He grew into one of the world's best players during his time with the Gunners.

He made 376 appearances for Arsenal across competitions in two separate stints, scoring a total of 228 goals and providing 103 assists. For Barcelona, the Frenchman made 121 appearances across competitions, scoring 49 and assisting 27 goals in the process.

Anelka, on the other hand, was a journeyman. He played for a host of European giants including Real Madrid, Chelsea, Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus, Manchester City, and Liverpool.

His best period came with Chelsea between 2008 and 2012, where he made 184 appearances across competitions, scoring 59 and assisting 36 goals.