It’s the second biggest signing in MLS history, and it brings us to a crossroads for the New York franchise. Thierry Henry doesn’t have nearly the star power of David Beckham but he does bring a tremendous amount of skill, a more impressive playing resume, and hope for a franchise that has built a reputation as a big-market underachiever for 15 years.

There was never a time that Beckham, for all of his celebrity, was ever considered the world’s best player. But that’s exactly what I felt Henry was when he scored 30 goals in 37 Premiership games for Arsenal in the 2003-04 season, plus seven more goals in other competitions. He is only three years removed from being Arsenal captain, and a little more than a year removed from winning UEFA Champions League with Barcelona.

“It is absolutely fantastic to get an absolutely top class player, still only 32 years old, winning everything you can imagine,” head coach Hans Backe said upon Henry’s official signing this week. “Being captain for Arsenal and the French national team, the character and personality he has is outstanding.”

Henry is a two-time runner up for FIFA World Player of the Year honors, but if he truly wants to make his mark as the biggest signing in the history of soccer in the United States, he needs to leave all past accolades in his rear view mirror. He needs to forget that he is just the fourth-ever MLS signing to have won the World Cup, which he did with France in 1998. He needs to put his ego aside --- if he even has one --- and have a singular focus that can be defined in one word: win. 

This is where he can separate himself from Beckham, Roberto Donadoni, Cuauhtemoc Blanco, and every other hyped acquisition MLS has ever had. While Beckham’s intention to raise the profile of soccer in the U.S. was admirable, it now appears to have been half-sincere. When making a five-year commitment to MLS, he should have taken into account how that would impact his chances of making England’s World Cup squad. An injury shot down that opportunity anyway, but the fact that he appeared as committed to continuing a career in Europe as he did in the Western Hemisphere was wrong --- not to mention a major conflict of interest for American soccer’s biggest import since Pele signed with the Cosmos.

Henry loves New York City, but having lived here my entire life I’ve learned a simple truth: New York will either love you back, or it will devour you. There is no middle ground. For Henry to be happy here he needs to view this not as a pit-stop in the life of a world-class athlete, but a long term destination. He needs to work with Juan Pablo Angel to form the best striker tandem in the league. He needs to mentor young players who don’t possess anything close to his football pedigree. If results are not immediate, he needs to be patient. When the initial wave of excitement from his arrival passes, and he looks up in the stands one night in Frisco, Texas and sees just 8,000 fans in attendance, he needs to fight through that and continue to perform. He needs to continue to do all of the things that have made him a great player --- an ocean away from where he worked his craft for some of the greatest club teams on earth.

I love this signing. I’ve heard some people say that this guarantees that the Red Bulls will sell out all of their games. I’ve heard others say it will have no long term impact at all on soccer’s viability in this country. I’m somewhere in the middle (and smart enough I believe), to recognize that Henry joins a league that is still in its infancy, hoping to ride the wave of success that was the World Cup. I’d buy a ticket to see him play.

But unless he is completely dedicated to making a winner of a franchise that hasn’t done nearly enough of that since 1996, his arrival will be nothing more than another flash-in-the-pan chapter of MLS.

From what I know of Henry, he’s better than that. I hope I’m right.

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