The rivalry, and fan problems, associated with this match are well documented, however historically OM have had the wood over PSG in Ligue 1 (OM won 27, D16 Lost 17) but PSG have the ascendancy in the cup competitions, having beaten OM in their only meeting in the League Cup (3-2 aet in the 2003/04 season) and are on a 5 match streak of eliminating OM in the French Cup, which includes their 2-1 win in the 2006 final at the Stade de France. PSG also have some history in the Champions’ Trophy having competed in it 4 times, beating Nantes on penalties in 1995 and beating Lens 1-0 in 1998, but losing twice on penalties to Lyon (2004 and 2006). Rades 2010 will be OM’s first participation in this competition.

OM have something of a problem up front in this match, with Mamadou Niang, Jordan Ayew and Brandao suspended and Morientes released, so it looks like Mali international Mamadou Samassa will be leading the line. This is actually an excellent opportunity for OM to put him in the shop window (he is transfer listed) and give Arles-Avignon, Valenciennes, West Ham, Wigan, Blackburn and Stoke City a good chance to look at him.

My projected OM lineup (with thanks to lephoceen)

————–Mandanda——————-

Azpilicueta – Hilton – Diawara – Taiwo

——————Cisse ———————

———Kabore ——– Lucho———–

Valbuena ———————– Ben Arfa

—————-Samassa——————–

I’d like to see Ben Arfa play because it may well be his last game for the club (he’s been heavily linked with German, Italian and English clubs), he’s of Tunisian descent and it would be nice to farewell him with a win. However, Dede Ayew, hot off the heels of a sparkling world cup is likely to play. On a side note I’m really happy to see Kabore establishing his name at OM, he’s really classy with superb technique. I’m not sure about PSG’s side, however they appear to have recruited well (Nenê and Bodmer), but are without Réunion born striker Guillaume Hoarau but might just take advantage of who isn’t available for OM (Niang, Brandao, Heinze (fatigue)). If I had to make a prediction I’d sit on the fence and say I can see this one going to penalties. Either way, it’s exciting that French football is back and that it is being exposed to the world (with the match being telecast in 52 countries), sadly albeit not Australia.

Be what you wear

Franck Ribéry was recently auditioned by a judge for allegedly soliciting the “services” of a underage prostitute.

I can’t help but notice that he felt the need to wear a Scarface t-shirt to the audition, which brings me to a few reflexions :

-  He’s taking “Scarface” literally, even though I’m quite unsure he actually knows what that means in English.

- He’s incredibly dumb : wearing a t-shirt of a character who made his fortune through criminal activities and mistreated women for a hearing in front of a judge doesn’t exactly send the right message. It gives the image of a player who couldn’t care less about laws.

In any case, his attitude calls for no defending whatsoever. He knew that the prostitute he has sex with was under 18 at the time, since he celebrated her 18th birthday after having met her. Unfortunately this case is too high profile so there’s a snowball’s chance in hell that he’ll end up with anything more than probation but a strong symbol needs to be sent that soccer players aren’t outside the law.

Edit : I am told that it is James Dean on the t-shirt. My point is therefore moot, but trying to make a message heard through a shirt reveals a certain weakness. My bad, still.

It would be hard pressed to say, for different reasons, that both their seasons have been crowned with success. Everyone knows what happened to Charlie Davies. He slowly got acquainted with Ligue 1 play before the devastating accident in October ’09 forced him to prematurely put an end to his season. Before that, he had shown that his pace could be problematic for slow French defenses. He scored a brace against defending champions Bordeaux and was elected Man of the Match after having martyred Monaco’s defense.

Carlos Bocanegra’s season contains more shades of gray. He was the starter at left-back for Rennes, and played the majority of the season, without impressing. The lack of a suitable replacement meant that he hung on to his position until late in the season where he was unfortunately injured. Upon returning, young defensive midfielder Romain Danzé seemed to be favored by coach Frédéric Antonetti and Bocanegra only filled in at the end of the season when there was nothing to fight for anymore.

Left back is not his favorite position, something that has shown this past season. The US National team captain was often overtaken by Ligue 1′s speedy wingers. With his experience, he was able to limit the extent of the damage but in contrast with Rod Fanni on the right, Bocanegra definitely looked like one of the weak spots of the team. His offensive production was also close to non-existent. Rennes considered parting with him in the winter transfer window, where he was rumored – already – to be headed to St.-Etienne, but Rennes wasn’t keen on investing on a substitute.

A risky move for Bocanegra

Bocanegra’s time at the Stade Rennais therefore was over, and St.-Etienne’s offer came as a blessing. Rennes was so willing to let him go that his transfer only cost les Verts a mere 500 000€. At first, one could think this is a pretty lateral move, but it looks more like a downwards move for Carlos. ASSE might have a glorious past but the present is far from brilliant. The team seems to be in constant rebuilding, the front office changes as often as Lady Gaga changes dress and stability is not “en vogue” amongst the club. The catastrophe of relegation was (yet again) barely avoided last season, and as usual, the club pledges to start off fresh and not reiterate the same mistakes they have been making over and over since their promotion in 2004.

Finally, this season, the coach hasn’t changed, as Christophe Galthier is being given some time to prove his worth. In order to do that, he is changing almost all of ASSE’s defense. New recruits Albin Ebondo (Toulouse), Sylvain Marchal (Lorient) and Bocanegra are poised to start the season and form the back four with Mamdou Bayal Sall. Bocanegra will be playing left-back. How long he will be there is a question that – sadly – needs to be asked. ASSE fans have a (deserved) reputation for being extremely demanding and critical of their players, and if Bocanegra plays like he did in Rennes, and if things start going haywire, Boca will be a pretty easy target and will be one of the first to get the axe. I don’t think a club will be reluctant with setting aside a player who cost next to nothing. I see a quick return to MLS for Carlos, but he will have had a good run in France ; his time is just over and he is not adapted to the demands of the left-back position anymore.

You can’t exclude things from finally going right in Saint-Etienne but given recent history, it isn’t likely either. It is therefore a pretty risky move for Bocanegra, something that looks kind of last resort. The advantage is that he won’t have to adapt to a new championship and/or language. This move is very “low risk-high reward” for the club, and there are players who can replace Bocanegra if things go wrong. So far, the club is unbeaten in pre-season play, if that means anything.

Unlikely sight? Sure hope not, but...

Charlie Davies’ situation is different and a little more complex.  He had some bad blood with his club who refused to clear him for World Cup play, citing the fact that he simply wasn’t ready and that it was in the club’s interest to keep him healthy so he could contribute in 10-11.

A couple weeks before season start, this standpoint needs to be questioned. FC Sochaux’s preseason has been subpar, and Charlie Davies didn’t take part in much of it. He played one half and 51 minutes in the first two games, which Sochaux heavily lost to inferior clubs ; he was then demoted to the reserves where he managed to score one goal, which earned him a call-up to the first squad for the next two games, both of them victories, in which CD9 featured no more than 10 minutes at the very end of the match.

The lack of communication from the club and the ever-so positive tweeting of Charlie Davies don’t allow us to get a fair view of the player’s situation with Les Lionceaux. It looks like coach Francis Gillot doesn’t think his American forward has totally recovered yet, despite all the hard-work he has put in.

This leads to the “chicken or egg” soccer dilemna : since Davies isn’t competitive yet, he isn’t playing much, but he needs the playing time to be competitive again. Sochaux’s reserve plays in 5th division, and Davies playing at that level for too long a time can’t be good for him.

Sochaux, a perennial relegation contender, will have an even harder time this season. Goalkeeper Teddy Richert – the soul of the club – is injured until the end of November, and playmaker Stéphane Dalmat, a driving force behind Sochaux’s decent 09-10 season was sold to Rennes. Sochaux is definitely weaker this season, and they will need to fight to stay in Ligue 1, something they are used to. But the core of the team is gradually getting younger, and the role of experimented players in relegation fights is well documented.

On a personal basis, Charlie Davies will be facing extra competition this season. Ideye Brown, who featured for Nigeria at the World Cup, was acquired during the winter transfer period to replace Davies and has been fairly successful with Sochaux. Vaclav Sverkos is a sure starter if he doesn’t leave the club, which looks like it will eventually not happen. More problematic, Sochaux just recruited Modibo Maïga, a promising striker who headed Le Mans attack last season, scoring 7 goals and showing lots of skills. It therefore seems that Davies is #4 in Sochaux’s forwards pecking order.

Sochaux having played with two strikers in preseason, it seems likely that Davies will eventually be used by Francis Gillot, except if the season gets difficult for Sochaux, and they revert to a 4-5-1 like they did last season, in which case 4 strikers will be a little too many. For a player who needs playing time to get back in shape like Charlie Davies and who already has had some beef with the front office, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him asking for a loan sooner than later.

Chris Mayer, from 6pointer blog, did a little research and wrote a nice piece on the tumultuous history of the Southern club.

A quality read for Ligue 1 fans.

Cédric Bakambu netted two goals as Les Bleuets dominate Holland.

While the senior French National Team were acting like a bunch of kids during the World Cup, the kids on the pitch for the U-19 European Championships where acting like a group of adults.

France went into this U-19 Euro Championship as one of the favorites, as they are the host nation, and they didn’t disappoint. They dominated Holland by a score of 4-1 in front of 11,000 fans at the Stade Michel-d’Ornano, home of recently promoted Ligue 1 side SM Caen to take three-point to start in the competition. In attendance was, of course, new Bleus coach Laurent Blanc.

France dominated the first half of the match, never really giving Holland any chance to organize. Even the Dutch coach, Wim van Zwam, said that his side played “sloppy” football.

“It was not the Dutch team I’m used to seeing,” said van Zwam “especially in the first half. We weren’t at the level we can play; we were sloppy in offence and sloppy in defence. We gave some big chances to France and I congratulate them and their coach, because they deserved the win and we didn’t.”

The scoring started when Chelsea sensation (and reason they had the transfer ban slapped on them) Gael Kakuta scored to give France the 1-0 lead. Kakuta intercepted a Dutch clearing pass in the Dutch 3rd, and rocketed past Holland’s defense, finishing with a strong strike to the lower right side of the goal.

Eight minutes later, France could have gone up 2-0, as Dutch defender Imad Najah tripped up Arsenal prospect Francis Coquelin. But the following free-kick, taken by Lyon’s Clément Grenier was saved by Dutch keeper Jeroen Zoek. A few minutes later, Dutch midfielder Rick van Haaren hit one off the post, giving the French side a bit of a scare.

Still, France was able to get the second goal in the first half from Sochaux product Cédric Bakambu, giving the Bleus a 2-0 lead going into the half. A French defensive long ball to Bakambu was poorly defended by the Dutch defense, and Bakambu broke in on the Dutch keeper, putting the goal away in, again, the lower right side.

While the second half saw France increase their lead, the Dutch were easily a better side than the were the first half, controlling the ball more and being a bit more aggressive.

Holland scored their only goal in the match in the 55th minute, when a free kick Jerson Cabral deflected off the French wall, and took a downward-right curve toward the goal, leaving French keeper (and Rennes product) Abdoulaye Diallo totally helpless. Still, the Dutch were able to cut the lead in half, and totally halt the French momentum that was built in the first half.

The next few minutes of the match saw Holland with some decent attacking, with Diallo making a few sprawling saves.

France, though, were able to take a 3-1 lead on an own goal by Bruno Martins Indi. French midfielder, and captain of the French team, Gueïda Fofana, tried a centering pass to Bakambu, but was instead deflected off the foot of Indi into his own goal. This seems to be the nail in the coffin for the Dutch team.

The fourth and final goal for the French side came in the third minute of stoppage time. A long cross-pitch pass was kept in-bounds nicely by Lyon product Alexandre Lacazette on the left hand side of the pitch. With all of the Dutch defenders being pushed forward, Lacazette was able to push toward goal and deliver a cross to the head of Bakambu, giving him his second goal of the match. Maybe Bakambu needs to team up with Charlie Davies up front at Sochaux.

After the game, French coach Francis Smerecki was happy to start off the tournament on a positive note, but that it was just the beginning.

“It is always better to start with a victory,” said Smerecki after the match. “Especially against the Netherlands. Scoring several goals is a good omen yet I know that a single win is not enough.

“We saw tonight that with enthusiasm, desire, heart and generosity, we can reach our objectives in this tournament. It is a great satisfaction because you are always worried at the start of a tournament about the physical preparation.

“We had a fairly good first half where we might have deserved a bigger lead but we dropped off in the second period. The Netherlands were probably annoyed and tried to come back but we had enough resources in terms of moral, willingness and technique to contain their surge. We set the tone but now we have to reach our next objective. The first one, which was to have a good start, is reached but we have other high goals.”

Here is the French lineup and subs for their match against Holland:

Abdoulaye Diallo – Loïc Nego, Sébastien Faure, Chris Mavinga, Timothée Kolodziejczak – Gueida Fofana (C), Clément Grenier (Enzo Reale, 79th), Francis Coquelin, Antoine Griezmann (Alexandre Lacazette, 72nd) – Gaël Kakuta – Cédric Bakambu.

Gallas to Greece?

First it was Djibril Cisse from Marseille. Then it was Sidney Govou from Lyon. Now Greek side Panathinaikos (god I hate typing out Greek team names) looks to be adding a 3rd French international to the roster.

William Gallas who, like Govou, had a terrible World Cup performance, looks to sign with the Greek side from Arsenal in the coming days. According to L’Equipe, Gallas, who recently became a “free agent”, would receive and income of about 1.5 million Euros a year from Panathinaikos.

Turkish club Fenerbahçe is also looking to dish out some big money in order to capture some Ligue 1 players. There is talk that Fenerbahçe would consider paying Rennes 15 million Euros for World Cup star striker Asamoah Gyan. In addition, Fenerbahçe is keeping their eyes on Marseille forward Brandao, who is being needed less and less by the team as each day passes.

In England, we are still trying to see what is going to happen to Loic Remy. According to Nice, there has already been an agreement between Nice and EPL side Liverpool in the area of about 15 million Euros. Still, Nice said that they are waiting for Liverpool to finalize the deal. Even so, there is still talk of a possible West Ham (yeah, I know) deal going through, which is around 18 million Euros. If Remy doesn’t sign with either team, Nice chairman Gilbert Stellardo said that there is still a deal on the table with Middlesborough that would loan Remy out for the season with an option to buy.

Stellardo also said that Loic Remy would not be replaced on the team if he departs due to the fact that there are already too many players on the roster for Nice. Therefore, relegation zone, here comes Nice.

According to France Football OM have been in contact with the “idol of 2003/04″ Didier Drogba. This was ably predicted yesterday or the day before on this site. I don’t think it will happen, if it does I think the victory will be Pyrrhic, with a cost of Niang, Ben Arfa and/or Cheyrou. To lose those for a 32 year old is madness, however, for 700 000 Euros a month (after tax) and a transfer fee of 15 millino Euros, the man might be ours. I told you this time of year was fun.

In other news, AS Monaco have apparently offered 6 million Euros for Brandao, which was refused.

While we have heard rumors from a number of teams in the last few months, it now looks like a transfer to the British Isles are in the cards for the on-and-off French international striker.

In the last few days, there was talk about him moving to a number of Ligue 1 teams. First in the news was talk about him moving to Bordeaux. In fact, Remy said as late as last week that he would prefer a move to Bordeaux over other teams that were mentioned at the time. In addition to Bordeaux, there was also talk that he might go back Lyon, where he started off as a youth player at the age of 11.

Rennes has also been considered as a possible new home for Remy as well, being a possible replacement for Jimmy Briand or if Asamoah Gyan leaves for another team.

But in the last 24 hours, attention has seemed to move from the France to England, where three teams seem to be in the running for the Nice striker.

The first team that has been mentioned is West Ham. Again, as an ongoing joke on this website, we always say that every French player and their mothers are linked to West Ham. Up to date, it is hard to take any possible transfer of any star striker from France to West Ham seriously. So we will put it on the back burner for now.

In an article that L’Equipe wrote today, Remy said that the decision was between two clubs. Again, he did not mention any French clubs, but two English clubs instead. First, and his overall preference, was Liverpool. His second preference was Tottenham Hotspur.

The idea of watching Loic Remy moving to Tottenham and taking on Thierry Henry and the New York Red Bulls in the coming weeks would be great. Still, which move is the best for Remy?

Remy is at a very important point in his football career. At 23 years old, he is at the point where he needs to decide if he wants to be an international superstar or just be a “good player”. As much as it pains me to say it, we have seen players throughout Ligue 1 history that could have been on the French National Team, but because they stayed with stagnate Ligue 1 teams (and teams abroad), their international careers never took off. Jerome Leroy, Stephane Dalmat and Mickael Landreau are great examples of players that let their international careers pass them by. While some of these players might have played for some decent teams, they weren’t exactly decent when they played for those teams.

Loic Remy has to make sure that he doesn’t fall into this trap, which he easily could if he makes the wrong moves. Therefore, lets look at the teams that Remy could move to and the possibilities that he would have with each of those teams.

Bordeaux – As we know, Remy would easily be the replacement for Marouane Chamakh as their star striker. While Bordeaux have lost the services of Chamahk and, as it looks like right now, Alou Diarra, they still have a decent team that could easily qualify for the Champions League in the future. And since people on the international scale are starting to notice Bordeaux more and more, a move to Les Girondins might make sense.

The only problem is the stability of this team and their management. If Bordeaux doesn’t qualify for the Champions League (which is just as easy for them to do as qualifying), who will leave the team next? Will Gourcuff leave (if he doesn’t leave this year), does Benoit Tremoulinas leave? Now you are talking about a team without Diarra, Gourcuff and Tremoulinas. Therefore, no real midfielders or wing back (with the exception of Mathieu Chalme) to support Remy. And the way that Jean-Louis Triaud runs his business, Remy cannot be reliant on a team that is so unpredictable.

Therefore, a move to Bordeaux has positives, but negatives as well.

Lyon – Part of becoming the international superstar that I mentioned earlier is being part of the team on a regular basis. And, honestly, do you see that happening at Lyon?

Lyon has Lisandro Lopez, Jimmy Briand and Bafe Gomis. And with Briand being Sidney Govou’s replacement, Remy would have to compete with Gomis for the #1 substitute spot. Is it worth it for Remy to move to Lyon if he is on the bench for half of the matches? A move to Lyon would make no sense whatsoever! Therefore, there are no positives in regards to a “Remy to Lyon” move.

Rennes – Most Americans might know Rennes because the US captain, Carlos Bocanegra, plays for them. But just because one American plays for the team doesn’t mean the team is good.

So far in this transfer season, Rennes have done a pretty decent job. While they did lose Petter Hansson to Monaco, they have acquired Onyekachi Apam from Nice and Victor Montano from Montpellier. In addition, they still have Asamoah Gyan, Nicolas Douchez and a number of good players surrounding him.

But is this a team that would qualify for the Champions League? Even with a decent core of players, they finished 9th this season (which was quite a shock, actually). And while Remy would be a replacement for the departing Jimmy Briand (assuming that he would get the nod over Montano), that doesn’t ensure that Rennes would see any success in qualifying for Europe.

Finally, just as the case in Bordeaux, we have a group of talented players that might want to leave Rennes if they do not quality for, at least, an Europa League sport. And if Remy signs a long-term contract, three years from now, he might be stuck on a team where he is the only quality players on the team, like the current situation at Nice.

Tottenham Hotspur – When I think Harry Redknapp, I think pure English football. Wherever he goes, he manages an English style of football with a ton of English players. Even Mexican international Giovani dos Santos has spent more time at Tottenham on loan than he has actually playing at White Hart Lane. Therefore, would a high-flying Frenchman be able to fit into his system of play?

The positive thing is that Tottenham will be able to qualify via playoff for the Champions League. But would Remy be part of the system? With Peter Crouch being one of Redknapp’s favorites and dos Santos returning from his loan in Turkey, could Remy even be part of the team. Granted, he would have a better chance at playing than he does at Lyon, but he would have to fight for a spot nonetheless.

As far as “covering all the bases”, Tottenham would be a good choice for him. He will, more than likely, play in the Champions League and get the international exposure he would need to propel his career. Still, would he be the starter over Crouch or dos Santos? That is the big question.

West Ham – Next

Liverpool – Many English managers have problems with adapting to managing outside of England, which is why many of them don’t even leave England. But Roy Hodgson is the exception. Malmo in Sweden, the Swiss National Team, Inter, Fulham Copenhagen, etc…Hodgson is actually an English manager that has seen the international game. Therefore, coaching an international player will suit him well.

As with the case in Tottenham, Remy would have some stiff competition. Fernando Torres and fellow Frenchman David N’Gog would be his hardest competition. In fact, it would be easier for him to play for Tottenham than with Liverpool.

But if he does move to Liverpool, there will be a number of positives. First, stability. While Liverpool is starting to become a team known for its instability, I feel that finishing 7th place in the EPL last year has woken up George Gillett and Tom Hicks (Liverpool’s owners). Bringing in Roy Hodgson seems to be a move in a positive direction. With that move, it seems like they want to make Liverpool a European superpower once again.

Second, because of the poor performance of Liverpool last year, Remy might have a little more room to maneuver around for better pay, more play and so on. Liverpool’s poor performance last year might be a positive for Remy this year.

Third, he would be playing for Liverpool. We talked about Peter Crouch earlier in this article. While he was a starter for the English National Team during the 2006 World Cup, he wasn’t even a starter for his club team, which was Liverpool. This shows that even being a bench player on Liverpool is a very powerful thing.

Fourth, being a member of Liverpool will give Remy all of the TV time he needs to get international exposure. And since Laurent Blanc won’t be managing a Ligue 1 team week after week, he can start paying more attention to EPL players as well. And since Blanc has already seen Remy play a number of times, his success in the EPL might give Remy a huge boost.

So yes, as much of an EPL basher that I am, and as much as I cannot stand Liverpool, I feel that Loic Remy’s best move is to Liverpool. It just makes the most sense.

Firstly, to those who have departed. Laurent Bonnart will be missed, having not renewed his contract, however I suppose it’s good business sense given his age and wage demands (and who OM have replaced him with, but we’ll get there later). Bakary Kone has gone to the Gulf for a reported 4 million Euros. Sadly he probably will not be that big a loss, I always thought he operated better in systems with 2 up front (rather than Deschamps’ preferred 3), however his pace, agility, mesmeric skill and (lack of) size made him one of my favourite players to watch. I remember it was rumoured Gerets had said something along the lines of “Get me Kone and I’ll get you the league), it didn’t happen, and he missed out on the Cote d’Ivoire’s world cup squad. I hope he does well in the Gulf and makes a lot of money.

Two of my disappointments from last year (but for differing reasons) have also left. Cyril Rool’s contract has expired was an odd one for me, a journeyman 34 year old full back who barely played and was way down the pecking order, whose signing confused me at the time. However, i suppose we’re not paying wages anymore so that can only be good. Morientes has also left, his contract terminated, after a very dissapointing season. I thought he’d add a touch of class leading the line, but he was, unfortunately, off the pace and didn’t have a good time of it. Again, this will hopefully free up some of the wage budget and I hope he finds pastures greener than the bare patch which metaphorically describes his time in Marseille.

Charlie Fomen has been loaned out to Ligue 2′s Dijon, and Garry Bocaly has, after being loaned to Montpellier, made that a permanent move. These two didn’t have that much of an impact last season so will be not so sorely missed.

There is speculation that Taiwo will go, which makes sense given the impending expiry of his contract and Heinze’s good performance at left back last season. The talk on LePhoceen.fr is of Atletico Madrid, Liverpool and of Spurs (continuing the theme of good players at French clubs jumping across the sleeve), and that OM have set an asking price of 10m Euros. Given he is out of contract in 12 months and we have Heinze play on the left side of defence, letting him go for between 5 and 10million would make sense to me. I’d hope that there would be no other departures, however many other names have been linked with a move away, from Ben Arfa to Brandao and interestingly Niang to Andre Ayew (both of who i really, really hope stay). Next up I’ll have a glance across those arriving.

Henry a Red Bull (David Clerihew/RBNY)

After moths of speculation about his possible departure from Spain to New York, The Sun in the UK reported today that Theirry Henry will be heading to the Big Apple to join the New York Red Bulls.

According to The Sun article, Henry signed a 4 1/2 year contract with the MLS side.

“This marks an exciting new chapter in my career and life,” said Henry, according to The Sun.

“It is an honour to play for the New York Red Bulls. I am fully aware of the team’s history and my sole goal during my time here is to help win the club its first championship.

“Knowing Red Bull’s significant commitment to soccer locally and internationally, I am confident that my team-mates and I will succeed.”

Also, according to The Sun, Red Bulls general manager Erik Soler added: “Thierry is not only a world-class player who will undoubtedly improve our squad, but he has shown most importantly throughout his career that he is a winner.

“He has made it clear to us that he is committed in the short and long term to help in our vision of making our organisation the premium franchise in Major League Soccer.”

It will be interesting to see how Henry is received in New York. In a city that has the highest Irish population in the US, and who slammed Henry for his handball against the Irish in the second game of their World Cup playoff, how will New York respond to the arrival of Henry?

While the Irish might not be happy, the largest French population in the United States is also in New York. With a large French following in NYC, Henry should hopefully feel right at home. But we will see if the Irish have anything to say about it.

Henry’s move to NYRB will likely see him teamed up with Juan Pablo Angel, giving New York one of the most lethal striking forces in the MLS. The last French international to come to the MLS was Youri Djorkaeff. He was also a member of the Red Bulls.

Henry will be wearing the number 14, and his debut is expected to be on July 22nd against the Tottenham Hotspurs (what is a hotspur anyway).