Arsenal News: Arsenal had a gem in their hands when they signed Thierry Henry for just £11m way back in 1999. But that wasn’t as easy as it sounds as many teams had the opportunity to sign him.
In 1994, Thierry Henry made his professional debut for French club Monaco and then stayed there for five years. He later moved on to Juventus but hardly had regular minutes to play.
Also, his issues with the club’s board made him leave the club and look for a new one. But, never did he know that his next move would change his entire career.
Manchester United was the first Premier League club to set its sights on Thierry Henry. Their scouts were impressed by his playing style and did recommend his name to Sir Alex Ferguson, the former United manager.
However, Ferguson was afraid of his fitness and thought that he could be injury-prone from such a young age. He passed on the opportunity to sign him. That is the moment Arsenal’s legendary manager Arsene Wenger made his first move.
In the year 1999. he was snapped up by Arsenal for such a low fee that it was labeled as a shrewd piece of business. The initial few years were testing times for Thierry Henry, but he stepped up really well. He went on to score 228 goals in 377 games for Arsenal and did this with a lot of silverware.
Thierry Henry was part of the invincible Arsenal squad that won the Premier League without losing a single game. He had his name etched in the history books for the Gunners.
Arsenal News: What Did The Premier League Legends Say About Thierry Henry?
Thierry Henry’s style of play was impressive as his raw pace, skill and physicality were a nightmare for the defenders.
As reported by Sportsbible, Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher had once said that coming up against Henry was the most difficult job for him. Also, Dennis Bergkamp called him as once in a generation type of footballer.
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Even John Terry had sleepless nights before facing Arsenal as he knew he had to play against the prolific French striker. Such was his fear in the league that even the mightiest teams had to prepare well or else they have the ball in the net.
This proves, that the statistics alone don’t speak but also those who played against Thierry Henry. He was and will always be a once-in-a-generation striker for the Gunners.
