Pre-Season Friendly – New York Red Bulls vs. Tottenham Hotspurs
Fans expecting to see New York Red Bulls newly signed Thierry Henry at the Red Bulls arena in New York were given exactly what they wanted as the Frenchman showed just what he’s all about in his first ever game at the club.
Henry has, over the years, been a very tough opponent for the Tottenham players and he showed his class right from the start, with a number of good touches and defence splitting passes. It looked like it was only a matter of time before Henry scored and had it not been for an excellent save by the Tottenham goalkeeper, Cudicini, who saved a rather weak shot from the former Arsenal striker.
However, Henry was not to be denied and in the 25th minute he opened his account for his new club with a well taken goal from close range. After good work from Lindpere, Henry got ahead of his marker and guided the ball into the far post with a faint touch.
The goal made it 1-0 to the Red Bulls who had been the better side up to that point. Harry Redknapp would be disappointed with the defending though but since it is only a pre-season game, some of the rustiness is explained by that fact. As the game went on, Spurs started to settle in and test their hosts.
An equalizer arrived almost instantly after the Henry goal, as Gareth Bale sent in an inch-perfect cross which was headed towards the goal by Robbie Keane, but unfortunately for the Irishman and the Spurs, the header was blocked and the score stayed 1-0 to the MLS side.
It stayed that way until half time, which was a perfect start for the New York side and exactly what the fans wanted to see. The French star, Thierry Henry, was taken off at half time which was understandable since most players involved in the World Cup are still on holiday and having played an exhausting 45 minutes, the rest was well deserved.
Spurs made two changes at half time too, with Taarabt and Townsend coming on for Naughton and Corluka in a very youthful looking side fielded by Harry Redknapp. It didn’t take long for the Spurs to score the equalizer, with Robbie Keane scoring in the 61st minute to make the score 1-1. Horrible defending was seen from the New York side, allowed Keane a simple tap in to open the goal-scoring for the North London side.
In the 71st minute, Spurs completed the come-back as Gareth Bale capitalized on yet another horrible piece of defending as Hall’s attempted back-pass was easily intercepted by the Spurs player who rounded the keeper calmly before putting the ball in the back of the net.
The goal made it 2-1 to Spurs and the New York side had no way back in to the match. With their new star striker watching on from the bench, the Red Bulls failed to score again and the match finished 2-1 to the English Premier League side. Harry Redknapp would have been pleased with the resilience his side showed during the course of the game, with very positive performances from some of the young players who started the game.
Another man who should be pleased with himself is Thierry Henry, who showed that he has still got the hunger and instinct in front of goal and could be embarking on a very exciting season for the New York Red Bulls.
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