UPDATE 1-Soccer-Arsenal lose injured Henry for rest of season

By Trevor Huggins

LONDON, March 9 (Reuters) - Captain Thierry Henry will not play for Arsenal for the rest of this season due to injuries, the Premier League club said on Friday.

The France striker, who damaged stomach and groin muscles in his team's Champions League exit to PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday, should be ready for next season, Arsenal said.

"Thierry Henry will be out for a minimum of three months," manager Arsene Wenger told their Web site (www.arsenal.com).

"Unfortunately, this means he will now miss the rest of this season both domestically and internationally, but we are confident that he will be ready for the start of next season."

Henry has been dogged by a lack of fitness since returning from the World Cup in Germany, notably with a long-standing sciatic nerve problem, along with hamstring and foot injuries.

The latest setbacks have been the final straw and Arsenal will have to pursue their only remaining objective -- a fourth-place finish that would book them into the Champions League qualifiers -- without the club's record goalscorer.

Henry, who has also been the Premier League's top scorer for four of the last five seasons, leaves a side who are fourth in the table and look comfortably on course for that objective.

They are a point behind third-placed Liverpool but have two games in hand -- which they also hold over fifth-placed Bolton Wanderers, who are five points further back.