'Messi is the best at the moment'

Thierry Henry, the celebrated French striker, feels in no uncertain terms that his Barcelona teammate Lionel Messi is the best footballer in the world today.

"I have played with him for a year now and I haven't seen anybody doing the kind of things that he does on the pitch," he said yesterday.

Speaking on the sidelines of the 'Thierry Henry Gillette Fusion Champion Meet & Greet' event at the Camp Nou Stadium - home of Barcelona - Henry was effusive in his praise for the 20-year-old Argentine, whose goalscoring form has been the key to Barca staying on top in Primera Liga as they head for the Christmas break.

In the last round on Saturday, Messi used his left foot to devastating effect to score the final two goals in their 3-0 demolition of Sevilla.

Replying to a query as to whom between Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka he considered to be the best in the world, Henry showed he was in no mood for diplomacy: "He [Messi] has a tremendous attitude ... he gets up even after getting a knock and gets on with the game. Yes, Ronaldo may win the Golden Ball award because his team won a few things, but for me, Messi is the best at the moment."

While Barca seem to have hit the right note this season, the 31-year-old Henry has not had that many starts so far - leading to whispers that all is not well between the World Cup-winning striker and coach Pepe Guardiola. As somebody who has performed under more famous names like his mentor Arsene Wenger or Frank Rijkaard, Henry still gave full marks to his current coach - even thanking his "tough measures" for the team's success rate so far.

"After the disappointment of last season, he is trying to put some strong measures in place and that's the way it should be. Players are now fined if they arrive late for practice and if one is more than an hour late, he is not allowed to join the group," said Henry.

"He has brought some kind of consistency in our game and we are more like a team now," the 1998 World Cup-winning striker continued.

While that's good news for the demanding Barca fans, Henry, it is believed, has not exactly been relishing the role of a winger, as conceived by Guardiola. Rumour mills have it that he could be on the wish list of the Abu Dhabi-backed Manchester City once the transfer window opens in January, though the player was quick to quash it: "I don't know what you are talking about."

Softpedal

When reminded that even Wenger has recently criticised Henry's move to Spain as a mistake, he chose to softpedal the question: "I don't know if it's a mistake."

It's, however, with the Gunners, whom he served between 1999 and 2009, that saw Henry at the peak of his prowess. Apart from being their all-time leading scorer with 226 goals, Henry had won them two league titles and three FA Cups, apart from guiding them to the Champions League final in 2006.

Asked which league he would consider to be the most competitive of all, he Henry replied: "It's difficult to say because each league has it's own flavour."

New course

Thierry Henry's football skills, it seems, have now found a new admirer in tennis ace Roger Federer.

Henry says they both keep in touch quite often, after having met sometime back as a part of the 'Gillette Fusion Champions.' Tiger Woods completes an illustrious trio, while Gillette has recently added a fourth brand ambassador - Saudi Arabian footballer Yassir Al Qah'tani.

"We had hit it off quite well and speak on the phone. Roger loves football and he has also taken up the game now," a tongue-in-cheek Henry added.

Brush with the star

It was one big party for the 60-odd winners of a Gillette Spot-the-Ball Contest from all over the world, conducted in the middle of this year in print media as well as online. The prize: an all-expenses paid trip to Barcelona, where they had a chance to come face-to-face with Thierry Henry and a guided tour of Camp Nou - one of the most aristocratic stadiums in the game.

Enjoying their moment in the sun were also three Dubaiites - all engaged in different professions, but revelling in the experience. While Dr Puneet Bhatia, an Indian, is a specialist in joint replacements with the American Hospital, young Brit Scott Stokes is a chef by profession and Ahmad of Egypt is an investment banker.

"It was sometime around June when I came across this contest in an advertisement, showing Henry in action with a ball that was obviously missing. I took part in it rather casually and even forgot about it - till the event managers called me about a month back. For somebody with only a casual interest in football, it's definitely an unforgettable experience," Dr Bhatia said.

The winners, divided into four groups based on the continents they came from, met the French star, who is one of Gillette's brand ambassadors, along with Roger Federer, Tiger Woods and a 'newcomer' in the exclusive club - Saudi Arabia's promising footballer Yassir Al Qah'tani.

Branded as the Thierry Henry Meet-and-Greet session, the winners quizzed him and had photographs taken while the former obliged everybody with his autographs.

What skills make a champion footballer? Do you think Lionel Messi deserves this title? Who is his biggest competition?