Forget all the hype surrounding Thierry Henry.

Forget the fact that he's a global icon and the Red Bulls' biggest signing in franchise history, and now he's supposed to be the next savior of soccer in the United States.

You really want to know why the Red Bulls signed him?

The reason: Goals.

This shouldn't be compared to David Beckham's stint in America, when the matinee idol scored a relatively pretty free kick once in awhile.

Henry is a player who knows where the back of the net is and can score goals in any shape or manner when given the opportunity. He can do it all. A typical Henry goal? An exquisite touch and control of the soccer ball before calmly slotting the ball behind the goalkeeper after making a run through the defense with the ball seeming like it was tied to his boots. That's a typical Henry goal.

This is the man who won the European Golden Boot – top scorer in all of the European leagues – twice (2004, 2005) and the Premier League Golden Boot four times (2001–02, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06).

He is Arsenal's all-time leading scorer with an astounding 174 goals in 254 appearances with the Gunners and the French national team leader with 51 tallies in 123 appearances. Those are phenomenal strike rates.

Even during a “disappointing” year in his first season with Barcelona in 2007-08, he led the team with 19 goals. This was a club that had the envy of every other with how much attacking talent they had – Lionel Messi, Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto'o ... and Henry was the leading scorer. That's saying something.

And he's not just a goal-scorer.

The ability to add to the attack without even scoring is invaluable to the overall team play. Henry is just as dangerous passing the ball as he is shooting it. The stats to prove it, according to soccernet.com: In 2002-03, Henry scored 33 goals in all competition and also had 23 assists. In his second year with Barca, he had 36 goals and 13 assists. Juan Pablo Angel must be salivating at the chance to play with this French maestro.

Want to know another reason why the Red Bulls signed TH14?

He's a winner.

Just look at Henry's sterling resume. It's loaded with personal awards and team success. A World Cup winner and European champion with Les Bleus. Winner of five domestic titles in three different leagues (France, England, Spain) and a UEFA Champions League medal during Barcelona's treble-winning season (La Liga, Spanish Cup and Champions League) in 2008-09. There are few, if any, players in the world who have achieved the heights Henry has.

And that's what the Red Bulls are hoping for. Sure, they want Henry to put more fannies in the seats and raise the profile of the franchise. But if Henry does what he has done for the past decade, that will take care of itself.

So get ready, Red Bulls fans. You're about to see something you've never seen before: A world-class superstar to take the pitch for your team.

Can't wait for Saturday.

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