Martinez plays down Henry's reunion with Ireland fans

Roberto Martinez held his counsel on Thierry Henry as the Frenchman prepares for a first reunion with Republic of Ireland fans since his infamous 2009 handball.

The striker's game-defining intervention to set up William Gallas during a tense 2010 FIFA World Cup play-off caused uproar in Ireland, and adds another subplot to Saturday's evening;s friendly between the Irish and Belgium at a sold-out Aviva Stadium.

Highly rated coach Anthony Barry - who left Ireland for a role with Belgium last month - is set for a swift reunion Thierry Henry will also be in the dugout in Dublin.

Martinez was diplomatic when asked about the reception the French coach could expect.

He said: "What I do know is Thierry is a football man whose behaviour as a footballer created incredible moments and created incredible stories.

"Now he's in a completely different role. Thierry Henry is not a player any more, he works with the national team and his work is very, very important, so for me to comment about what Thierry Henry did as a player is out of place."

Martinez has insisted the label of world number one is not enough for Belgium as they target World Cup glory.

The Belgians, minus some of their biggest names, will run out in Dublin for Saturday's friendly against the Republic of Ireland sitting at the top of FIFA's pile but intent upon turning their reputation into tangible success in Qatar this winter.

Martinez said: "After the World Cup in 2018, it was a real objective to become number one in the world because that is a way of measuring a national team's consistency.

"There are two ways of measuring the national team: there is tournament football and there is the consistency of that level to win games, qualification campaigns, and it is almost an