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Doneil Henry leaving TFC for Europe?


BrennanFan

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Thought this should have its own thread, as the rumour seems to have some serious legs.

 

Henry came into the Supporters Section after Saturday's loss.  He was the only TFC player to do so.  I think he knew he had just played his last game for TFC, and came to say goodbye. 

 

Rumblings are that he is going to Turkey.  

 

Henry would be the first Canadian MLS Academy grad to make the jump to Europe.  Really hope this move materializes.  With the right coach and environment, the sky is the limit for him.  

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Hopefully Toronto gets a reasonable fee for him. They certainly paid the price in terms of results for developing him to where he is now. BTW, he's not even the first centerback to go to Europe from a MLS academy: Daniel Stanese is in the BL4 after graduating from the 'caps academy in the MLS era.

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Could be a great move for Henry if he receives quality coaching and some decent pairings in the backline.

 

A bit sad to see him go, he's been around for awhile and I thought he'd be the first player to hit 100 appearances with the club. (Sidenote: Pretty pathetic that VWFC already has a few players above the century mark while TFC has none.)

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Hopefully Toronto gets a reasonable fee for him. They certainly paid the price in terms of results for developing him to where he is now. BTW, he's not even the first centerback to go to Europe from a MLS academy: Daniel Stanese is in the BL4 after graduating from the 'caps academy in the MLS era.

 

Ya, but Caps probably didn't get much more than the stem of Nürnberg/Ausburg's piss for him, as he signed on a free transfer after a season of NCAA. Hopefully, TFC can do a bit better with Henry.

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Ya, but Caps probably didn't get much more than the stem of Nürnberg/Ausburg's piss for him, as he signed on a free transfer after a season of NCAA. Hopefully, TFC can do a bit better with Henry.

 

The point was Henry is not the first.    

 

It'll be interesting to see if this is true.  He has his critics, but I'm a big fan and think this was inevitable.  Can see him in the Championship.    

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I find it hilarious when people rip on Doneil Henry.  The guy is probably the best young center back Canada has ever produced.  It shows you how little people in Canada/USA understand the game when we have amateur writers like Molinaro and Larson tearing up the kid for dumb reasons, as if a World Class center back never makes/made a mistake.. especially at 21.  And Hagglund gets off for every mistake because he's American and somehow in the same class as Henry in terms of class and potential.  Funny how people still hype up 1st round picks in this league despite the very low success rate associated with them.

 

Henry is an absolute STUD.  S - T - U - D.  Has a coach ever NOT rated him?  Nelsen, Winter, Floro, Miller, Allardyce, Hart/Fonseca... seems he's received high praise from all of them and many of those coaches who are saying he's going to the top have been at the top.   

 

Yes he's made some poor plays but he's also been victim to some awful officiating on a few occasions.  And when he makes an amazing play no one notices.  TFC v Montreal V cup final legs 1 and  2 2014.. first tape I grab off the shelf for anyone who wants to see Henry if I'm his agent.

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Hopefully Toronto gets a reasonable fee for him. They certainly paid the price in terms of results for developing him to where he is now. 

 

Toronto developed him so they do deserve a reasonable fee for him and a percentage of future transfers. However, I would dispute the second half of your statement. If TFC had ever had a decent manager they probably could have signed a better CB than Henry but even then with the salary cap I think Henry has been good value for the money and by far not the first position that needed upgrading. Given the players TFC has signed I think Henry has been at least in the upper 50% if not higher performance wise so I don't think he is very deserving of any blame for the results. A young cheap homegrown player who is a MLS quality CB is not the reason TFC has sucked. They have had too many more expensive foreign players who have underperformed and many who were below MLS quality and that is the reason TFC has been so bad over the years. Another 2 or 2 Henry level players would have actually been an improvement for them.

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I find it hilarious when people rip on Doneil Henry.  The guy is probably the best young center back Canada has ever produced.  It shows you how little people in Canada/USA understand the game when we have amateur writers like Molinaro and Larson tearing up the kid for dumb reasons, as if a World Class center back never makes/made a mistake.. especially at 21.  And Hagglund gets off for every mistake because he's American and somehow in the same class as Henry in terms of class and potential.  Funny how people still hype up 1st round picks in this league despite the very low success rate associated with them.

 

Henry is an absolute STUD.  S - T - U - D.  Has a coach ever NOT rated him?  Nelsen, Winter, Floro, Miller, Allardyce, Hart/Fonseca... seems he's received high praise from all of them and many of those coaches who are saying he's going to the top have been at the top.   

 

Yes he's made some poor plays but he's also been victim to some awful officiating on a few occasions.  And when he makes an amazing play no one notices.  TFC v Montreal V cup final legs 1 and  2 2014.. first tape I grab off the shelf for anyone who wants to see Henry if I'm his agent.

 

I think everyone wishes him the best of luck and I'm sure a different environment will do him wonders.  But he's got a long way to go and thankfully, a lot of years to get there.

 

No shot intended but I can't help but feel NOT being in Toronto is going to be good for his personal development.  Not necessarily MLS in general, just not Toronto.  Doesn't mean league X, Y, or Z will automatically help him to improve, but at this point it ain't likely going to hurt.

 

Points for being bold.  Like to see that in players.  Not wrecklessness but a willingness to challenge yourself and improve when the opportunity presents itself and that's what this feels like.

 

Here's hoping for the future.,  His and ours.

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I don't know how Henry will get a UK work permit. Juan Agudelo can't get one, and he's better talent than Henry playing for a higher ranked FIFA nation.

 

If Henry goes to Europe, it'll be to somewhere with more relaxed foreign player quota league. 

 

And I hope someone teaches Henry how to use his physique better than play like he's on steroids all the time.

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I really got tired of having to defend this kid from TFC fans, he was often made the scapegoat by these supporters, many of whom don't have a clue! Henry made plenty of errors in his time at TFC but many were a result of covering others mistakes which I suppose is a CB's role, some perplexing referee decisions have gone against him as well, he's one of the best pure tacklers I have watched live! I think the timing is right for him to get out of his comfort zone and get some different coaching as well as getting away from the "TFC Circus". it will be interesting to see where he ends up and how he adapts!

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The two sentiments about Henry aren't mutually exclusive. He is a very exciting talent who is dominant physically and still young. He also made a lot of mistakes that cost Toronto games and was a big part of a very inconsistent Toronto backline that has been the club's main weakness since the first game they played. That's not exclusive to him, but center back is a very tough position to play well when you are a young player, especially in the pre-USL-loan MLS while surrounded by some very poor players on the backline. Montreal's use of young players at the back at the start of this season was a major reason for their disastrous start and the team never really recovered.

 

I think it's best for both he and the team that he move on this winter, Toronto can get some more experienced players in at the back and Henry can go to a more stable and competitive club situation where he can refine his technical and tactical skills.

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Go read what  VWFC has written. It was about Morgan, not Henry.

 

Not to turn this into a "what should Ashtone Morgan do" thread, but from a playing perspective, Finland would be a good fit. The unfortunate thing is that Finland will pay him about 1/3 of what he would have made at TFC this year.

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