Thierry Henry names 'the most underrated player in existence' and he's convinced

Thierry Henry has described one of his fellow countrymen as "the most underrated player in existence" by far.

The former Arsenal striker, who is the manager of France's under-21 team, will lead the team at next year's Olympic Games in Paris.

Henry's team at the Olympics will be comprised mostly of players who are below the age of 23, but he can call up three senior players.

It was reported this month that he hopes to select Kylian Mbappe, Olivier Giroud and Antoine Griezmann as part of his squad, according to Le Parisien.

And in an interview with the same outlet, Henry heaped praise on Griezmann, who recently ended his 84-game streak after pulling out of the France squad.

“We must not forget Griezmann, who reminds us that hard work is a talent," Henry said.

"Griezmann is by far the most underrated player in existence. We often talk about Kylian, so much so that I am even in favour of abusing him. But Griezmann… look at his passes and his goals.”

You could argue Griezmann's contribution at national level has been understated.

He played a key role in their 2018 World Cup win and four years later, the Atletico Madrid forward was a standout performer as Didier Deschamps' side reached the final in Doha.

Henry added: “Tell me who in history could play all four offensive positions like him? There aren’t many. Grizou is one of them."

Image credit: Getty

Whether Griezmann will end up playing for France at the Olympics has not been decided but he is keen on making it happen.

“I haven’t talked about it with the coach but it would be a dream for me," he told reporters.

"If I’m called up, I’ll put extraordinary pressure on them to let me do it. It’s a dream, it’s a goal, it’s in France, it’s representing France. The Olympics. Everyone watches them."

He added "I want it and it would be a dream to be able to experience it.”

Atletico Madrid, meanwhile, are not keen on releasing Griezmann so he can play at the Olympics in July and August, according to RMC Sport.

The 32-year-old is France's fourth-highest scorer with 44 goals in 127 games,

Topics: Thierry Henry, Atletico Madrid, France

Jack Kenmare

Senior Journalist at SPORTbible with a passion for long-form journalism. Almost 10 years’ experience across online and print.

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