Comments on: Brilliant free kick opportunity infamously squandered for the Red Bulls; what was Thierry Henry thinking?

By: tylerbetts

tylerbetts — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 19:24:45 +0000

What? You guys don’t remember when Joe Montana went with the halfback pass to Dwight Clark to get that iconic touchdown to beat the Cowboys and put the 49ers in the Super Bowl? Or when Michael Jordan passed the ball to an end-of-the-bench teammate who took that iconic shot over Craig Ehlo in 1989? Or when the Yankees pinch hit for Alex Rodriguez in the playoffs with the game on the line? (Oh, wait, I guess that one happened …)

I STILL can’t believe Henry didn’t take that shot. If you’re an MLS team with a player my wife would say “damn, you’re going to give up a goal here” when he stands over that shot (and that’s not to say anything negative about my wife who tolerates my soccer addiction), how do you not have that player take the shot?

But, hey, I guess that’s why you’re the Red Bulls, and your trophy room is still empty. Or, to put it another way: Henry not taking that Free Kick is so Metro.

By: arwlin777

arwlin777 — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 18:06:40 +0000

Henry not stepping up to take the FK was a complete joke. This guy is the team’s star DP, and is paid to come up big in these type of situations. Whether or not he would’ve scored doesn’t matter, the fans just want to see him take the FK and know he gave it his all. No amount of explaining from him can justify the decision for him to defer to Roy Miller. Do you think Beckham in the same situation would allow someone else to take the FK? Even Juan Pablo Angel, the team’s previous DP, stepped up to take free kicks when the game was on the line (see 6/2/2010, when Angel hit a game-winning FK in stoppage time to defeat Houston 2-1). And let’s not even get into the fact that most of Henry’s goals scored this year were against non-playoff teams, and his continued refusal to play on turf.
The team’s DP and “captain” not willing to take a FK with the game on the line, I’m not sure how any of his teammates can continue to respect someone like that. Yelling and gesturing angrily at your teammates on the field also doesn’t make you a great team leader. Wearing a retro Metrostars armband may score you some points with the fans, but it doesn’t win playoff games and it doesn’t get you an MLS Cup. I believe a lot of NY fans lost some respect for Henry last night with him not taking the FK.

By: mdac1012

mdac1012 — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 17:33:16 +0000

It’s like having Michael Jordan on your team and you ask Luc Longley to take the last shot of the game with the season on the line.

By: dfstell

dfstell — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 17:13:38 +0000

Yeah….I didn’t get this either. When they lined up, I thought it was kinda pathetic that Roy Miller was the best left-footed player they could put up there. Ha! No one will believe that Henry would defer to Miller, right?

Whatever it was, as an outsider, they’ve got a LOT of housecleaning to do at NYRB.

By: soccerjohn

soccerjohn — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 17:03:05 +0000

Did Henry indicate in postgame comments that he went along with Miller taking it? Because it looked to me like Miller rushed his shot. Could have been that he thought he saw the keeper out of position. Could have been an effort to beat Henry to it. (And could simply be that he didn’t rush his shot, I suppose.) But, to me, it looked rushed.

And Henry’s reaction, to hold his head in his hands. All game long, the guy made a big show of demonstrating his woe and dismay at the ref’s calls, opposing players’ temerity for falling when he made contact with them, and his teammates’ gaffes. Obnoxious.

By: capsfan19

capsfan19 — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 16:44:30 +0000

I agree!!!! As a united fan, when the ref pointed to the spot this is what happened “great… Henry is gonna rip this top shelf…… HA HA HA HA”
Honestly what was he thinking?

By: berlintexas

berlintexas — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 15:34:30 +0000

The fans deserve an explanation from the team and the player.