Opinion: Thierry Henry should be the first player to be inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame

The Premier League officially announced on Thursday that they would launch their very own Hall of Fame, with the first two inductees set to be unveiled next month. A statement from their official website reads:

"The Premier League has revealed plans to launch its official Hall of Fame, which will recognise and celebrate the exceptional skill and talent of players who have graced the competition since its inception in 1992. Membership of the Premier League Hall of Fame will be the highest individual honour awarded to players by the League."

The English top-flight has been home to many footballing legends over the last few decades, making it incredibly hard to outrightly pick the greatest player to have played in the country's best division.

However, the Arsenal faithful and many neutrals would agree that Thierry Henry should definitely be considered for the exclusive honour. The Frenchman, who was signed by Arsene Wenger during his time as manager at the London club, is now cast in bronze outside the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has been cast in bronze outside the Emirates Stadium

Henry defined a generation of football like no other: from his iconic knee slide celebrations to his infamous goal-scoring style, his name continues to be mentioned in Premier League conversations.

The former Monaco sensation scored an astonishing 175 goals in 256 league appearances (across two stints) for Arsenal. He is widely regarded as the best player to have played for the Gunners and is certainly one of the greatest strikers to have ever graced the Premier League.

The 2003-04 season, in particular, will forever remain in the heart of the iconic Frenchman. It was in this campaign that the prolific striker lifted the only golden Premier League trophy won by an English side. He also picked up the PFA Player of the Year award as well as the European Golden Boot- scoring 29 goals across all competitions- in a season that was full of individual and collective accolades.

228 - Thierry Henry is Arsenal's all-time highest ever goalscorer, with 228 goals in 377 games. Anniversaire. pic.twitter.com/qQc02u2R5p

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 17, 2017

This defined Henry as a player: he was goal-thirsty and was his own harshest critic when he went a game without finding the back of the net. This is largely why Arsenal managed to get through the season without losing because when a player like him is at the other end scoring a multitude of goals, defenders will almost always find themselves slipping up.

It is for these reasons, among many others, that Henry should be one of the first two inductees into the Premier League Hall of Fame.

Who do you think he should be partnered by? Let us know in the comments below!

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