Ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League play-off match between Real Madrid and Manchester City, the 47-year-old Henry joined former Premier League stars Micah Richards and Jamie Carragher, along with presenter Kate Scott. ..Continue Reading
“They [Manchester City] won the treble with him [Erling Haaland],” Henry said when speaking on CBS.
“You have to give him that respect, but the jury is still out.”
The former Barcelona player then turned attention to Mbappé, 26.
“Kylian [Mbappé] for me has more of a pass… this is a guy that’s trying to play as a nine for one and a half years,” he added.
“They tried to do it with Paris Saint-Germain – it didn’t work out. He’s doing it at Real Madrid the biggest club in Europe and people will argue in the world.
“He has to adapt to that [playing as a centre-forward]. This guy [Erling Haaland] has been playing as a nine since the beginning of his career…
“We thought that these were the two guys that were coming after [Lionel] Messi and [Cristiano] Ronaldo but now instead of having a confirmation of what they are people are still questioning the way they play and not the stats because the stats are magnificent in terms of goals.”
Carragher, then questioned whether the Frenchman sees the duo as “two of the best players in the world right now”.
“Of course… not maybe the two best but they are top,” explained Henry.
“Some people say Mbappé, some people say Vinicius, some people say Lamine Yamal is coming… I’m just saying it’s not a sure thing.”
Carragher then asked who Henry would prefer to have in his team as a centre-forward before the former Arsenal player instantly answered “Mbappé all day”.
“I’ll tell you why, because he does offer different options for a coach,” Henry explained. “He can play on the right, he can play on the left [and] he can play in the middle.
“Can Haaland play any other position than a nine?”
The former Barcelona striker then turned to his fellow panelists and asked them who they would rather defend against, given their backgrounds as defenders.
Richards, 36, mentioned he would “prefer Haaland because you know he wants to run in behind,” an opinion Carragher agreed with.
