Thierry Henry spoke about his days with Lionel Messi at Barcelona and drew a comparison with Cristiano Ronaldo.
Lionel Messi shined at Barcelona for 17 years. For a brief stretch, he shared the pitch there with Thierry Henry, one of the greatest forwards of the modern era. The French legend reflected on what that experience meant to him and compared Messi to Cristiano Ronaldo.
In a 2014 conversation with English icon Rio Ferdinand, Henry named Messi the best player in the world, calling him “a freak” because of his extraordinary talent with the ball at his feet.
To explain that, the World Cup winner with France in 1998 recalled a moment from their training days at Barcelona. “We were playing 7 vs 7, in a space that is not that short, from halfway line to the goal line… The bosses sometimes don’t call the fouls on training. He was like, ‘What? It’s not a foul?’ He would run, go to the goalkeeper and say, ‘Give me the ball,’” Henry began.
“This is Barcelona’s training. So if he wants to go all the way, he has to pass Yaya Toure, Busquets, Puyol, Rafa Marquez,” Henry continued, and then, gesturing with his hand, showed how Messi dribbled past all of them: “1-0. I don’t know a lot of people that can do that. In my career, I didn’t see that.”
The story left Ferdinand equally impressed. “That is like school football. That’s what you would have done at school, that’s what I’ve done at school,” said the former Manchester United player. “But he’s playing world-class players.” Henry responded: “That’s my point, and he’s making us look like we’re not there.”
Years later, in his book My Autobiography, Ferdinand recalled that conversation and added more detail. “Thierry said: ‘Can Ronaldo do that?’ I said, ‘Well, I’ve never seen him do that.’ Thierry played with Zidane and Ronaldinho but they never did anything like that. He said: ‘That’s when I knew Messi was different to anyone we’ve ever seen.’”
Henry compares Messi with Ronaldo
In the same conversation, Henry explained what gives Messi an edge over Cristiano. “I respect Ronaldo a lot. I respect the amount of work he puts into the game, the amount of dedication he has. Ronaldo had to work really hard to reach the top,” said the French star. “With Leo, it seems natural.”
Thierry then elaborated on Messi’s unique qualities. “Although Leo works a lot… You see a guy that is kind of a gift. What he does is unheard of, I mean, I don’t know if we’ll see that ever again,” said the French legend. “That’s the difference, because the mentality and the way they play is the same for me. They just want to be the man at any time.”
How did Henry do playing with Messi?
Thierry Henry arrived at Barcelona in 2007 after several dominant seasons with Arsenal, where he was arguably the best player in the Premier League. In Spain, he joined a star-studded squad that included Ronaldinho, Xavi Hernandez, and Andres Iniesta. Still, Messi—only 20 years old at the time—was beginning to make his mark.
During Henry’s three seasons at Barcelona, he witnessed Messi’s rise from a supporting role alongside Ronaldinho to becoming the team’s No. 10 and a Ballon d’Or winner. In the three years they played together, Henry and Messi won seven titles, including the 2008–09 UEFA Champions League.
From: bolavip.com