Along with Henry, we’ve also seen 37-year-old Paul Scholes return to football with Manchester United and he didn’t look out of place in his first game back against Man City either. But while some fans view the signing of these players as a step backwards for teams such as Arsenal, others actually feel the league in general is suffering from the lack of overall young talent. They feel it doesn’t say much about the league if its top stars are guys like Henry and Scholes while Spain’s La Liga boasts youngsters such as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
You can’t blame Arsenal for signing Henry on loan. He’s the club’s all-time leading scorer with 227 and didn’t cost much in today’s age of overinflated salaries. Besides, what the club pays him in wages and the New York Red Bulls in loan payments they’ll probably make up in sales of Henry jerseys. With far-less skilled players such as Andy Carroll being sold at astronomical prices, Henry can be seen as the steal of the century.
Arsenal knows exactly what they’re getting with him and this is important as the club fights for a Champions League spot. They can’t really afford to blow it at this stage and don’t really want to experiment with youngsters and newcomers. There’s no need to really, not if a proven player like Henry can be added to the squad even if it is for just a couple of months.
There’s simply too much at stake. Whether Henry was signed because of the new financial fair play rules or because he came cheap shouldn’t matter. It’s not his fault if the talent pool in the league is running dry or teams are trying to save money. He should be judged on what he brings to the team.
What he does bring, is enough skill and knowhow to take some of the pressure off of Robin Van Persie. The Dutchman has been responsible for about 47 per cent of Arsenal’s goals so far this season. There’s a hell of a lot of weight on his shoulders. If Henry is used properly and partnered with Van Persie the pair of them are going to cause a lot of havoc on the pitch and should be able to carve out boatloads of quality scoring chances.
Henry might not have all of the same physical qualities he used to, but his mental approach to the game, along with his professionalism, attitude and enthusiasm should more than make up for it. With racial abuse and scandals occupying the sports pages lately, Henry’s arrival is like a breath of fresh air for the EPL.
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