I couldn't stop Henry
By SHAUN CUSTIS
FRANZ BECKENBAUER has admitted even he would have struggled to stop the awesome Thierry Henry.
German legend Beckenbauer is arguably the greatest defender the world has ever seen.
Nicknamed the Kaiser, he skippered West Germany to World Cup triumph in 1974 and went on to manage his country to glory 16 years later.
But Beckenbauer, 58, says in all his years he never saw anything quite like Henry.
And the thought of the electric Arsenal striker coming at him brings even the super-cool defender out in a cold sweat.
After watching Henry collect his runners-up award at the FIFA World Player of the Year gala in Zurich, Beckenbauer was full of plaudits for the Gunners star.
He said: “It is impossible to stop Henry for the whole 90 minutes, no one could do that.
“There will always be moments when he gets a chance because he’s so quick.
“You cannot stand off him, you have to mark him closely, that to me is the only way to deal with him.
“He is too fast to allow him space to run at you. You have to stay tight.”
Arsenal face Beckenbauer’s great love Bayern Munich in the last 16 of the Champions League.
He was a player for Bayern and also their president until quitting to run Germany’s 2006 World Cup campaign.
But, though he no longer holds an official position at the club, he is still a major figure behind the scenes.
Beckenbauer admitted facing Arsene Wenger’s outfit is a daunting prospect.
He said: “In my opinion Arsenal are the favourites. But no team in the world is unbeatable.
“I am looking forward to the tie and I feel our team is in good shape.
“I couldn’t say we wanted to avoid them because there were many strong teams left in the competition so you have to accept what you get.
“Henry is so good he will make it hard for us but the whole team is excellent — one of the best in Europe.”
German keeper Jens Lehmann, recently axed for Spaniard Manuel Almunia, could be back in the Arsenal goal by the time the two sides meet in February.
That will re-ignite the debate about whether Lehmann or Bayern keeper Oliver Kahn should be the German No 1.
Beckenbauer added: “I don’t really know about the situation for Lehmann at Arsenal but Kahn is the best keeper as far as I’m concerned.
“Lehmann is a wonderful goalkeeper but in my ratings I make
Kahn No 1.”
