Did you Know?
This shirt was worn by Thierry Henry during the Champions League between Juventus and Monaco which took place in Turin, “Delle Alpi” Stadium on April 1st 1998. The shirt was swapped with a Juventus’s player and the “CANAL+” sponsor fell down during the post game washing. In 1990, Monaco sent scout Arnold Catalano to watch Henry, then at the age of 13 in a match. Henry scored all six goals as his side won 6–0. Catalano asked him to join Monaco without even attending a trial first. Catalano requested that Henry complete a course at the elite INF Clairefontaine academy, and despite the director’s reluctance to admit Henry due to his poor school results, he was allowed to complete the course and joined Arsène Wenger’s Monaco as a youth player. Subsequently, Henry signed professional forms with Monaco, and made his professional debut on 31 August 1994, in a 2–0 loss against Nice. Although Wenger suspected that Henry should be deployed as a striker, he put Henry on the left wing because he believed that his pace, natural ball control and skill would be more effective against full backs than centre-backs. After a tentative start to his Monaco career, Henry was named the French Young Footballer of the Year in 1996, and in the 1996–97 season, his solid performances helped the club win the Ligue 1 title. During the 1997–98 season, he was instrumental in leading his club to the UEFA Champions League semi-final, setting a French record by scoring seven goals in the competition. By his third season, he had received his first cap for the national team, and was part of the winning team in the 1998 FIFA World Cup. He continued to impress at his tenure with Monaco, and in his five seasons with the French club, the young winger scored 20 league goals in 105 appearances. Henry left Monaco in January 1999, one year before his intimate and closest teammate David Trezeguet, and moved to Italian club Juventus for £10.5 million. He played on the wing, as well as at wing back and wide midfield, but he was ineffective as a goal scorer, struggling against the defensive discipline exhibited by teams in Serie A, registering just three goals in 16 appearances. In 2019, on Jamie Carragher’s podcast The Greatest Game, Henry attributed disagreements with Juve director Luciano Moggi as his rationale behind departing the club.
Did you Know?
Afterwards, Contreras made a move to Monaco of France. At the young age of 21, he was an important element in Monaco’s league and Supercup victories of 2000. He also appeared for the club in both the UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League. In January 2001, however, it was discovered that Contreras was using a fake Italian passport in order to gain European Union status. A Paris court fined the player €30,000, and he received a two-year ban. Monaco was then forced to loan Contreras out to another team, and he moved to Argentina with Racing Club. Shortly after, in July 2001, he was sold to Celta de Vigo for €4.2 million.
MONACO A.S. F.C.
2000-2001
Champions League
Match Worn Shirt
Contreras Pablo
