Thierry Henry Response To Which Player He'd Pay To Watch Sums Up Modern Football

Thierry Henry gave a damning answer when asked who the last player he’d have paid to watch was.

The question was put to the CBS Sports panel – made up of Jamie Carragher, Micah Richards and Henry – by presenter Kate Scott following Wednesday’s Champions League coverage.

And who better to ask than Henry, who was arguably one of the best players to watch during his prime years at Arsenal between 1999 and 2007, during which he helped the north London club win two Premier League titles and three FA Cups.

The former France international remains Arsenal’s highest-ever goalscorer with 228 goals, 175 of which came in the Premier League.

Fast forward to 2025, and there’s an argument that football is more strategic, systematic and arguably plain boring with players following instructions from coaches rather than being ‘off the cuff’ like previous generations.

The long throw-in is a current trend among Premier League teams, with an average of 3.85 arriving in the opposition box per game so far during the 2025/26 campaign – more than double last season’s figure of 1.52.

Carragher is among several pundits who have addressed the topic in recent weeks, with the former Liverpool captain branding them as boring.

But every so often, a player comes along who spectators would pay to watch given their unique ability on the field.

In recent years, Premier League stars such as Cole Palmer and, since joining Everton on loan from Manchester City, Jack Grealish have reminded fans that some footballers still take matters into their own hands by playing with freedom rather than following orders.

But who were the last players the CBS panel would’ve paid to watch?

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Almost predictably, Richards and Carragher named Barcelona and Spain starlet Lamine Yamal.

“Lamine [Yamal], the dream, he excites me a lot,” Richards said on CBS Sports.

“I was going to say him to be fair,” Carragher replied before passing the question onto Henry.

“The last one I would’ve put money [on to watch play] was Eden Hazard,” Henry added before Carragher chimed in saying “Ekitike”, causing both the Frenchman and Richards to disagree.

Despite not naming him last night, Henry previously described Yamal as the player he enjoys watching most in an exclusive interview with SPORTbible’s Jack Kenmare.

“I'll tell you why. And it's not because of what you think I'm going to say," he said in May of this year.

"It's his maturity.”