Henry more was graceful and had more flare and finesse but Mbappe for France is another level and now has a chance to win CLs with Madrid and will go down as the better player
Who is the better player: Mbappe or Henry?
- Thread starter Fortitude
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Scoring 30 in ligue 1 for 8 seasons is not the same as scoring 20+ in the prem at its peak for 5 seasons and then going and winning the treble with Barca
But Mbappe will also end up being France top scorer, World cup top scorer, and will possibly add to his international collection of medals. Will also have much more of a role in Real Madrid than Henry had at Barca, that's for sure.
If Solanke is scoring 20 goals in the PL how many do you think Mbappe would get? He'd comfortably keep pace with Haaland imo. Then when you look at the world cup, it sort of stops the idea that he can only do it in the French league:
Mbappe world cup goals: 12
Henry world cup goals: 1
I genuinely believe Mbappe is a different class to Henry. Closer to Ronaldo in terms of output.
Not just the world cup, it's just that you all compare Henry's entire career to Mbappe's.
If you compare them at 25:
Mbappe:
283 goals and 125 assists in 358 games for club.
CL: 48 goals and 26 assists in 73 games.
46 goals and 31 assists in 77 games for France.
WC: 12 goals and 3 assists in 14 games
EURO: 2 assists in 4 games
Trophies: WC, 7 x French champion, 5 domestic cups, etc...
Henry:
111 goals and 34 assists in 311 games for club.
19 goals and 3 assists in 38 games.
12 goals and 7 assists in 38 games.
WC: 3 goals and 0 assists in 9 games
EURO: 3 goals and 1 assist in 5 games
Trophies: Carried to WC where he did play the final, EURO, 1 PL, 1 French champion, 1 FA cup.
I'd say Mbappe is well ahead at 25. What Henry did in the PL the next 4 seasons was pretty spectacular, but it's not impossible to match.
Mbappe's just getting started. I'd say he has plenty of time to secure his place on top of the all time French footballer list.
Mbappe at 23 is better than Henrys entire career
Every attacker scores more goals now. Put Messi into the late 90s prem and he isn't scoring 50 league goals. Even Brazilian Ronaldo wasn't scoring 40+ every season back in the 90s early 00s
So yes while Mbappe does have better numbers all round than Henry I don't think it's fair to just use goals when comparing them and most people will say Henry at his peak was a far better footballer than Mbappe
I do think Mbappe in Madrid will score a bucket and win a few CLs and he will go down as better than Henry overall though
Henry because of his league merits for me.
Mbappé has been on holiday (leaguewise) up until his Real Madrid move, but will overtake Henry if he does well there
Mbappé has been on holiday (leaguewise) up until his Real Madrid move, but will overtake Henry if he does well there
All Mbappe needs now is a couple top level domestic seasons at Madrid (easy) with a top level CL performance (manageable), and it's not really that close.
Henry was a freak in the PL but wasn't that good outside of it (CL; Barcelona). Mbappe has already done all Henry did at national level.
2002/2003 Henry in the PL: 24 goals and 21 assists
Peak Henry is a little underrated he was absolutely magic
Mbappe would never have the ingenuity to score the flick up and volley goal Henry scored against us
Henry was an incredible player, but ‘far better’ than Mbaope? I don’t think that’s accurate at all. Mbappe is only 5 goals behind Henry for France having played about 50 less games.
Platini
Far better to watch. More skillful. More elegant.
Put 2004 Henry in the 2020s psg team how many does he score?
I'll say Mbappe has done as well as Henry in the league at least done more than Henry at age 24
He surely has Outdone Henry in the CL or National team
Put Messi in the late 90's prem with how much space was afforded and how end to end the game was and he's scoring as many as he wants
I don’t necessarily think Henry would score more than Mbappe. I don’t think the opposite either, to be clear.
Yes Henry was more elegant but that’s stylistic, it doesn’t make him a superior footballer. Ditto ‘better to watch’. Not sure I agree at all on skill. They are both supremely skilful. How do you explain the France goals? Mbappe’s ratio is approximately Henry plus 50%, and Thierry played in a genuinely great team. It’s the closest we can get to a genuine comparator (not perfect obviously, nothing is), and Mbappe is comfortably ahead.
I preffer Henry overall as a player, regarding his intelligence, his game and capacity to involve his teammates. Plus as skill as he was, he was quite generous in his commitment.
I do think that Mbappe is more direct, a better goalscorer so far and a very skill powerful player. He also has great timing on his side, dunno if it's just that, or he creates that "timing", or a mix of both, but he more than often has it.
He is a player that has had enough big moments even in below par games by him.
More than who is the better player per se, everyone will have their favorite, Killian right now is in a great spot to have a better overall carreer. This aspect not few times, in the comparison between such calibre of players end being the deciding factor in their alltime consideration.
I do think that Mbappe is more direct, a better goalscorer so far and a very skill powerful player. He also has great timing on his side, dunno if it's just that, or he creates that "timing", or a mix of both, but he more than often has it.
He is a player that has had enough big moments even in below par games by him.
More than who is the better player per se, everyone will have their favorite, Killian right now is in a great spot to have a better overall carreer. This aspect not few times, in the comparison between such calibre of players end being the deciding factor in their alltime consideration.
I don’t remember games where Henry was non existent, he always seemed to be a danger even if he wasn’t playing well.
I have seen Mbappe be virtually invisible in games and show a serious lack of interest.
But on the other side of the coin, Mbappes top form is probably better than Henry’s top form. If I had to chose one just as he was coming into his prime, to sign for us….. I’d go for Henry just because of his attitude. He matched arrogance with work rate. Both absolute monsters though.
I have seen Mbappe be virtually invisible in games and show a serious lack of interest.
But on the other side of the coin, Mbappes top form is probably better than Henry’s top form. If I had to chose one just as he was coming into his prime, to sign for us….. I’d go for Henry just because of his attitude. He matched arrogance with work rate. Both absolute monsters though.
For now Henry, up to Mbappe if he steps up or if he Neymars himself.
Surely there needs to be a ‘roughly equal’ option available. Because I think that actually reflects the reality of the situation
I can’t see Mbappe acting like Neymar, but I may be wrong. Either way, Real are going to be devastatingly for the next few years.
I'd take a prime Henry over Mbappe. Consistently good in a better league.
Neymar takes too much shyte, he is and was a phenomenal player. He might have not made the best carreer choices, some of his injuries might be due to his lifestyle, but man he was and still is an off the charts talent, way better than many people gives credit.
BTW if sthg Killian has to change, is precisly his attitude towards the game itself and some of his off field "issues" like getting close to PSG ultras to gain their support and such.
Pffff Stuart Pearce and Neil Ruddock would have kicked him all the back to RosarioPut Messi in the late 90's prem with how much space was afforded and how end to end the game was and he's scoring as many as he wants
I literally had no recollection of Mbappe being part of the 2018 World Cup squad let alone scoring in the final.
And Mbappe will score more goals for France at the world cup than R9 by the time he's done and far far more club goals. Is he a better player than him too?
You're saying style and the eye test doesn't matter and it's all down to goals basically. De Bruyne must be better than Ronaldinho and Zidane going by your logic
If they didn't tear their knees in half before trying to do so as he skins them for the 6th time in a half.
I do, he scored twice agaisnt Argentina in a very impactfull Mbappe style.
Henry did not score 20+ at the prem at its peak. He left to Barcelona when it was at its peak. The time he was at Arsenal, they were killing it in the PL without leaving any mark on the CL.
What evolved the most in football tactics was the attack, not the defense. In 80s and 90s, most teams, including the big ones, had a very solid defensive system and relied on the individual skill of their forwards or on spamming crosses in attack. Players like R9 or Maradona had an opponent specially scheduled to chase them ALL THE TIME(and the referees were much more indulgent with fouls). In today's game, that doesn't happen anymore because of how dynamical the offensive tactics and movements are.
Yes, a bit off topic and doesn't say much about this specific comparison, but I've seen some fellas using this kind of argument as if it was easier for forwards back them.
Yes, a bit off topic and doesn't say much about this specific comparison, but I've seen some fellas using this kind of argument as if it was easier for forwards back them.
Just as a side note, I trully think that It doesn't work that way.
Nothing is that linear, less when talking about the level of talent of someone as special as Messi, R9, or even Henry & Mbappe.
In any case, on any period, the perfomance of a player will always depend more on what team and (mainly) with what coach a player lands in a certain moment, than anything else, these two aspects are way more important than the period, the League and everything else, more when we are talking about such special players.
PD: In fact in the EPL in the 2000's most players where scoring around 20 and for a large part of the 90's Alan and even Cole where scoring more than 30.
Yet indeed in the 2000's there were lots of big clubs becoming juggernauts and an overall more offensive oriented trend, but also it was a period with lots of great all around fowards leaving behind the more classic big number 9 of the 90's...every period has more or less a trend on what roles are more predominant in terms of great quality, like the 80's and the abundance of offensive midfielders and playmakers and such.
PD2: Mbappe certainly will have to drop some of his diva attitude towards the game and have more involment in case he doesn't score at every chance he has, because he won't be at home anymore and the spotlight will be a lot brighter and constantly on him.
Yet at the end of the day, we should not believe that much in such premises as Messi in the 70's would have scored 100, or 5 golas in the 90's, players would very much play according to the enviroment and tendencies of their respective periods.
Being able to deploy Mbappe anywhere across the front line and have him perform is a pretty big advantage.
MBAPPE is already a bigger star by reaching the finals at 17 and scoring a world cup hattrick ..
If he goes to Madrid, wins a few , wins 1 more WC, then in 10 years we will be asking if he is a better player than Messi/Ronaldo ..
Better play I think is Henry
If he goes to Madrid, wins a few , wins 1 more WC, then in 10 years we will be asking if he is a better player than Messi/Ronaldo ..
Better play I think is Henry
Best means different things for different people. You mean best and to you it seems to mean, "Their absolute very best ceilng even if it doesn't happen very often."
My 'best' involves a combination of reliability, consistency, output and influence.
If you said to me over 5 years and 38 game league season + europe, who i would have, I would choose De Bruyne over both.
Zidane spent half the league games doing feck all and milling about (I did an analysis of this in the Bellingham thread if you want to check it out)
Ronaldinho peaked for 3 years and then turned absolutely shite through bad fitness and a complete lack of interest.
And yes, Mbappe has clearly had a better career than R9, he had 3 great seasons amid ACL tears and then obesity.
If your point is "Was R9 from 1996-1998 better than any version of Mbappe?" Yeah sure, but that's not what "best" means.
Many players have had higher peaks than Cristiano Ronaldo, doesn't mean they are better than him though.
Henry so far and for me it's not that close. He played for the biggest teams across Europe, won titles with all of them and technically was on a different level. Scored some absolutely ridiculous worldy goals as well.
Mbappe got some French titles in a team that has 10x the budget of their nearest competitors. Done little in Europe when the pressure is in.
Both played in France teams that were absolutely stacked with quality and won titles and got to finals at that level.
Mbappe got some French titles in a team that has 10x the budget of their nearest competitors. Done little in Europe when the pressure is in.
Both played in France teams that were absolutely stacked with quality and won titles and got to finals at that level.
Yeah, hate to break it to you, but Arsenal wasn't exactly facing Stellar competition from 2001-2007 either. Granted, it's better than what PSG have to reckon with, but Man Utd and Chelsea were the only other viable teams during that period.
And even then, only Chelsea had a top tier defense. Man Utd spent ages running around with Silvestre, Wes Brown, Quinton Fortune, Phil Neville, John O'shea and a Rio who got banned then got consistently injured.