West Ham United midfielder Alex Song has said that the football world will mourn the loss of "king" Thierry Henry following his retirement.

The 37-year-old called time on his illustrious career on Tuesday as he gears up for a spell in media.

Song, who played with Henry at Arsenal for a number of years, has now thanked the legendary Frenchman for having such a big impact on his career.

"For me, I call him the King," he told the Daily Mail. "He was unbelievable. An amazing player and a great man. I knew him from when I was 17 and I learned a lot from him. Even now he'll say to me you need to this and do that.

"So today, we miss a very big player. Not just here in England but in the world. Everybody knows his face. The things is did for football were good.

"So I just like to say thank you to him for everything. 'I learned a lot from him, will always be his good friend and I am very happy for. I'd like to wish him all the best for 'the future in all that he wants to do. He achieved a lot of things in football. That's why I call him the King."

Henry - also Arsenal's all-time record goalscorer with 228 goals - helped the Gunners to two Premier League titles and four FA Cups in his eight-year spell in North London.