In the presence of genius.........................

[alonso14]

I can see it now......the flash of a red shirt, the turn, quick as a flash......the drop of a shoulder and shot so powerful it could have been out of a barrel of a gun.....Kenneth Mattheson Dalglish...

I am not sure you recognise genius at the age of 8.....but I knew something was different about him......he had vision, the ability to bring other team mates into play without looking, and an underring sense of timing........Remember the goal at Arsenal in the banana yellow kit? i dummy, a turn a clip into the top corner..simple, effective, genius...

Oh here he goes again, the daft scourser eulogising about his club again...

aaahhh but not so fast..I am not here to talk about Dalglish....

I want to ask you a simple question....Do you realise what you have? mmmm? do you?

Do you understand that in front of your very eyes, or on tv you are witnessing a footballing god? a genius? A player who makes everyone sit up and take notice, who makes your heart beat faster, makes you want to watch him over and over and over again.......But enough of Philip Senderos...

You know who I mean....the erstwhile ex winger bought from Italy who couldnt score for toffee when he arrived....

As a Liverpool fan, I have been fortuneate enough to watch many a great player in my time from Keegan to Heighway to Whelan to Rush to Barnes to Fowler to Owen to Traore....

But genius? genius? just the one..........and that is Dalglish....

in 34 years of watching the club I have seen one true genius.....they dont come along often......and you certainly dont get to watch them them week in week out...Maradona, Pele, Best, Cruyff, Di Stefano, Puskas.....I'll include Dalglish.....

But what you have now is right up there....and I am not sure the press or the fans are giving him the recognition he deserves

After all what makes a "genius"? In my eyes there is one criteria.......He can do things others cant.....he pushes the boundaries that divides us as football fans and makes us sit up and take notice. So Maradona is a cheat, yeah yeah...he is a druggie, yup...but he is without doubt a footballing god.......Best, womanising, drunk and played for that lot....but my Dad says he is the "Best" he has ever seen.

I read recently that the Premierships best player has been Roy Keane.....Dont get me wrong he was a fantastic player, one I actually admire.....but genius? no?

I have read some interesting comments on here since I have joined......apparantly he feings injury to keep him out of playing against United, he moans too much yadda yadda

Please do not underestimate what you are witnessing,,,,,,,in 10 years the people lucky enough to watch his career develop from the stands at Highbury and Asburton Grove will be telling there kids about Henry the way I tell my son about King Kenny...He is that good.....he socres goals no other can.....he is lightening quick, and as skilful as anything...on his day he is totally undefendable. Unstoppable.

You hhave had some great players in my lifetime.....Brady, Jennings, Rocastle, Bergkamp, Vieira, Gus Cesar to name a few

But Henry? is, in my opinion the best of the lot......I just dont think some people have realised it yet

Enjoy

 

[RocktheCasbah]

Great article, sentiments I definitely agree with.

I wonder the same about some Gooners around here, no, he's not been great this season, possibly even by normal standards never mind his own. That being said, however, he is a wonderful footballer and I for one feel very lucky to have seen him play for us.

 

[alonso14]

undervalued

which is ridiculous

 

[awooga83]

Totally agree mate, its a sad fact that often alot of people don't realise what they have until they no onger have it.

However i have and always will appreciate what we have seen in Thierry. I remember speaking to a couple of my mates a few years ago, one Chelsea and one United and we were talking about him. I said when you look back on this era of not just the premiership but world football people will refer to him as one of the greatest players ever and certainly one of if not the best of his time, in a similar way people look at Best, Cruyff. But none of them would have it i was told he was a good player but he was still below Cantona by both of them and Shearer would be remembered higher.

Don't get me wrong Shearer was a great player but he didn't have that something that genius as you put it. There will be quite a few more shearers in the future but players like Thierry are very rare, certainly for a club but football in general.

I have been very privillege to see him at him peak and playing in person and i haven't overlooked the significance of it even if others sometimes do.

 

[RC8]

Great article. My only objection is that Dennis Begkamp is as much of a genius as Henry. He was not as athletic, and did not have Henry's speed, etc, but he truly was a genius. His vision, his passing, his close control and understanding of his rivals. They are in the same league.

 

[alonso14]

Yeah but I never get the sense that Bergkamp was undervalued

i do with Henry

 

[mr top banana]

another qua;ity post mate 8)

agree with you entirely about henry and his abilities.

the problem with his type of player is that once they reach a certain point in their career, people expect him to perform miracles every time he touches the ball, and this is where the doubters knock him . there is no doubt that he is a genius. how many players get applauded by the opposition fans as often as he does when he leaves the field.
he is the reason that teams like wigan get full houses when arsenal play there as opposed to half empty when they play the likes of reading etc (i was going to right liverpool but thought better of it :wink: ) he puts bums on seats because he is worth the entrance fee alone !!!
one thing you havn't touched on, with the likes of dalgleish etc is the way he conducts himself off the field. he never makes front page news for the wrong reasons, he is a perfect role model for all the youngsters watching. i don't know if you noticed , but at the start of the fa.cup tie against you last week (sorry to remind you ) you had two mascots. one of which was handicapped. the lad was struggling to get up the steps to the pitch and henry took his hand to help him and looked genuinely concerned for the boy. i thought that was a nice touch.

you are also correct about these players not coming along too often, so i pose you a question back.
how lucky are we to have two players in the same team at the same time ? i'm talking about 'Cesc Fabregas' alongside henry, as i truely believe that he is already on his way to being an all time great. he does a different job of coarse, but the two combined spell 'entertainment' . last weeks goal at blackburn is a perfect example 8)

all the best

MTB

 

[YeahBee]

Yeah but I never get the sense that Bergkamp was undervalued

i do with Henry

I feel quite the opposite really, in Sweden atleast (where we have alotta L-pool fans but sadly alotta manure fans in my age) Hnery's talents aren't underrated they are quite obvious but anyone who hasn't really studied Bergkamp sees his greatness.

A genious in Swedish football is Glenn Hys'en how has history treated him in Liverpool?

 

[alonso14]

Glen Hysen was ****e

 

[M+D]

Great article, another great post Alonso14.

 

[Gurgen]

Henry is indeed undervalued, and it's baffling.

He has that magic aura that only a few players have. Players like Henry are the reason I watch football. Like Bergkamp, even when he scores a tap-in it's beautiful to see.