How good was Thierry Henry in his Barcelona's days ?

[Etoshow]

The amount of alpha in this team is absolutely astounding.

The amount of talent in this team is absolutely astounding.

Two GOAT tier midfielders, a GOAT tier RB, and a GOAT tier player in their prime.

Even VV was a level or two above anything else we've had at GK recently in the truly big games.

I think you forgot to add a GOAT tier defender and of course a GOAT tier striker.

 

[Messigician]

Overated af.

Literally 1 good season and that's it

 

[Etoshow]

The trio of Henry-Eto'o-Messi in 08-09 was probably the most entertaining football spectacle I have experienced on TV. Guardiola did an amazing job converting Henry to more of a winger/striker hybrid, in the sense that if he needed to play in the middle he would and if he needed to hug the touchline he would. He also provided quite a bit of assists to Eto'o and messi IIRC. I really respect Henry for really taking a secondary role to what he was used to at Arsenal. Many footballers of his caliber would complain and go to the media but it was very respectable that he accepted Guardiola's tactics.

On a side note, that trio would score goals for fun and many times it looked way too easy for them. It was also very entertaining watching Messi still be a winger and have extremely fast acceleration. It was insane how fast he would pass defenders with his quick bursts. For me that 08-09 season is the best season I've watched as a Barca fan. Just a combination of everything: Technique, physicality, speed, and spirit.

The trio of 2006 with Ronaldinho, Eto'o and Messi is the more spectacular for me even if they didn't play together for a long time in their best.

 

[Richard.H]

The trio of 2006 with Ronaldinho, Eto'o and Messi is the more spectacular for me even if they didn't play together for a long time in their best.

Dinho was pure entertainment, but overall I enjoyed watching the 08-09 team absolutely destroy the opposition week in week out. Dinho alone was certainly entertaining enough but I feel the 08-09 team was just the absolute peak of that generation. Nearly all players were on form and in sync.

 

[Etoshow]

Dinho was pure entertainment, but overall I enjoyed watching the 08-09 team absolutely destroy the opposition week in week out. Dinho alone was certainly entertaining enough but I feel the 08-09 team was just the absolute peak of that generation. Nearly all players were on form and in sync.

The Pep Team was better but not more entertaining in my opinion. I think in 2006, the players were more individual while in 2009 it's a beautiful team's work. I'm not saying the trebble's generation wasn't great individually but in 2006, we won almost by individual efforts especially by Ronaldinho, Eto'o (he was a more spectacular player than his 2009 version even if he still amazing), Messi and D?co. The other players could also give us some amazing actions.

 

[serghei]

The Pep Team was better but not more entertaining in my opinion. I think in 2006, the players were more individual while in 2009 it's a beautiful team's work. I'm not saying the trebble's generation wasn't great individually but in 2006, we won almost by individual efforts especially by Ronaldinho, Eto'o (he was a more spectacular player than his 2009 version even if he still amazing), Messi and D?co. The other players could also give us some amazing actions.

Not that much to do with players. Guardiola was just on a different level to Rijkaard. Rijkaard was solid but in a normal way, Guardiola was a visionary.

 

[BarcaOG]

Overated af.

Literally 1 good season and that's it

right, because winning 6/6 trophies is overrated... since it happens all the time

 

[serghei]

The 08-09 team is a bit better than 2014-15 imo, the midfield makes the difference. It's the 2nd best team I've seen us having after 2010-11. Henry was a star player that season with a lot of big goals.

 

[Fati_Future_BallonDor]

The 08-09 team is a bit better than 2014-15 imo, the midfield makes the difference. It's the 2nd best team I've seen us having after 2010-11. Henry was a star player that season with a lot of big goals.

Agree, especially the midfield was a lot stronger that time. I think only MSN has been stronger than HME, maybe MSN is the best trio in history in football. Imagine behind them prime Xavi/Iniesta/Busquets, they could have gave us the CL before it has started.

 

[Vilarrubi]

Overated af.

Literally 1 good season and that's it

L.

 

[fergus90]

Everything about the 08/09 season was just incredible. Pep revolutionising the first team after an especially horse shit season prior, so many players were in there prime or reaching their prime, we played incredible football and left a lot of top sides looking absolutely ordinary.

Valdes - Alves Pique Puyol Abidal - Toure Xavi Iniesta - Messi Henry Eto'o had the perfect mixture of technical ability,skill, fighting spirit and leadership.

Plus the kit was beautiful.

EDIT - the 2010/11 side was the pinnacle but we lost profiles in the squad e.g. Toure and Eto'o that I wish were still a part of that 2010/11 side.

 

[serghei]

Everything about the 08/09 season was just incredible. Pep revolutionising the first team after an especially horse shit season prior, so many players were in there prime or reaching their prime, we played incredible football and left a lot of top sides looking absolutely ordinary.

Valdes - Alves Pique Puyol Abidal - Toure Xavi Iniesta - Messi Henry Eto'o had the perfect mixture of technical ability,skill, fighting spirit and leadership.

Plus the kit was beautiful.

EDIT - the 2010/11 side was the pinnacle but we lost profiles in the squad e.g. Toure and Eto'o that I wish were still a part of that 2010/11 side.

Yea, but we added Villa and Pedro who were big-game players as well, with impeccable mentality. Both scoring in the CL final is no accident. The problem was 2010, and that fucked-up infamous exchange, which saw us playing with Bojan as a striker in the key part of that season.

 

[KingLeo10]

2010/11 is technical perfection but 08/09 is the one I would send out against anybody. I don't think the technical AND physical Milan of the late 80s would faze them. I think the 10/11 team would find it tougher against those profiles.

14/15 was a nuclear attack and we destroyed everyone that season (beat RM, AM x 4 , Bayern, Juve, PSG, City) but the midfield was very good at best and the defense (while statistically our best ever) was suspect with Cryba in there.

 

[serghei]

14-15 was a "conventional" world-class team, but not very special in terms of actual domination of the match. We simply went toe to toe with teams and blasted them away with the tremendous firepower we had, supplemented by great seasons from Alves and Iniesta in particular. Not that much different than best versions of Madrid, Bayern, Liverpool.

2010-11 was the most advanced version of Pep's "Juego de posicion", crazy stuff but totally unsustainable for more than one season. 2008-09 sits somewhere between those two. More structured and clearly more dominant than 2014-15, but not quite as commanding and fluid as 2010-11. Had some stronger leaders though, like Eto'o and Puyol, still in their prime.

2011 on the other hand had the peak of Xavi, Iniesta, Busi, Messi, Alves. But they did lack at times the blunt presence of a physical, fast, killer like Eto'o was. Can't have it all I guess.

 

[KingLeo10]

I prefer peak Yaya Toure to peak Busquets.

Busquets was amazing with prime Xaviesta but there's no chance he can do what Toure did for us in the 09 CL final.