Snatch of Deja Vu As Aragonés Taunts Henry

Luis Aragonés's infamous description of Thierry Henry as a "black shit" was revisited yesterday when he made another disparaging reference to the former Arsenal striker during a training session with the Spanish national team.

Having seen the Spain coach produce a neat piece of skill while messing around on the training pitch, Valencia's Joaquín remarked how Aragonés was just like Henry. Aragonés responded: "Que coño Henry! Que coño Henry!" But while coño literally translates as a very rude term for the female genitals it is nowhere near as strong in Spanish as its English counterpart. The meaning of "Que coño Henry" is closer to "Henry - who the hell is Henry?!"

"Let's see Henry score the 162 goals I scored," Aragonés added, to giggles from Joaquín. "A hundred and sixty-two! In the league. That's just in the league. And from midfield too!"

Aragonés, 69, who played for Atlético Madrid and Real Betis scored 160 league goals during his playing career before becoming a coach with Atlético. His 30-year managerial career finally led him to taking the Spain job after the 2004 European Championships. Thierry Henry scored 174 league goals for Arsenal, 226 in total, before his summer move to Barcelona.

In 2004 Aragonés was caught on camera describing Henry as a "black shit" while trying to motivate his then Arsenal team-mate José Antonio Reyes during a training session with the national team.

The Spain striker Fernando Torres has asked local media to stop trying to stir up trouble in the national team and to back them in their Euro 2008 qualification campaign. They had reported that the Liverpool striker was upset at being substituted during Spain's 1-1 draw in Iceland on Saturday.

"I am not angry with anyone. It seems we talk about everything except football, and football is what gets us to the Euro 2008 finals. We need everyone's support," Torres told a news conference. Spain take on Latvia in Oviedo in Group F tonight.