The French Impressionist and the Dutch Master

I discovered that Thierry "Titi" Henry wears the number 14 shirt in homage to the player he admires most, Johan Cruyff. For Titi think Monet, and for Cruyff, think Rembrandt. They have elevated the execution of their sport to a higher art form, and are not merely players, but artistes - isn't it high time FIFA recognised aestheticism as a merit in its own right?!

While Titi is missing a Champions League medal, Johan Cruyff has never won a World Cup medal, after the Dutch narrowly lost to what was then West Germany in the 1974 World Cup final. Der Kaiser famously said about Cruyff, "He was a better player, but I won the World Cup."

At club level, Titi came into his own at Arsenal, where he has broken virtually every club scoring record while for Cruyff, it was at Barcelona where he not only won La Liga and the European Cup as a player, but later on, as manager, won the league title for four consecutive years, 1991-1994, and the European Cup. He belongs to a select few who have won the European Cup as a player and a manager.

Both Henry and Cruyff were instrumental in getting their respective countries, France and Holland to World Cup finals. In Henry's case, he top scored for France in their 1998 World Cup triumph - he matched this feat at the Euro 2000 Championship, which France also won. At the FIFA World Cup in Germany 2006, he was instrumental in France's 3-1 defeat of Spain, and against Brazil, converted Zizou's free kick to put paid to the reigning World Cup holders. Despite losing the 1974 World Cup final, Cruyff won the Golden Ball, for best player in the tournament. He famously boycotted the 1978 World Cup in Argentina, in protest at the military coup that had taken place 2 years earlier, despite having played a significant role in helping Holland qualify for the tournament.

Cruyff patented the Cruyff turn. This could become Henry's signature move, but then again maybe not as it hasn't become part of mainstream viewing which means too few people know about it. If there's another player out there whose exploits can evoke a spontaneous operatic aria from a watching commentator, I would like to know.