Thierry Henry makes controversial Nick Pope claim after Newcastle draw with PSG

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Thierry Henry has made the controversial claim that Nick Pope’s save against Bradley Barcola was not as impressive as it first seemed after Newcastle drew 1-1 with PSG.

Nick Pope had one of the performances of his life as he pulled off some incredible saves to keep Newcastle in with a chance of beating PSG on Tuesday night.

Thierry Henry, however, claimed on CBS Sports that his most impressive save against Bradley Barcola was actually more down to poor finishing than it was a brilliant save.

Pope crucial in draw vs PSG

Without Pope in goal it’s very unlikely that Newcastle would have walked away from the Parc des Princes with anything to show for their efforts, let alone a point.

The £10m star made six saves in total to keep the Magpies in with a chance of earning an impressive victory in Paris and was unlucky to have lost his clean sheet to a controversial last-minute penalty.

His save 65 minutes in against Barcola’s effort from point blank range was a particular highlight for the former Burnley man who somehow managed to get his knee in the way of the attacker’s shot and keep it out of the net.

Henry was more critical of the PSG forward for his poor finish, claiming that he simply has to score there.

On CBS Sports, Henry said: “Barcola couldn’t finish the amazing work of Mbappe there.”

This causes Micah Richards to raise an eyebrow, asking: “Great save though, no?”

Henry then responded: “No, I think it’s a bad finish. You have all the goal open on the other side, you should go first post. It happens, but it’s a bad finish.”

Pope needed a star performance

Pope has come under heavy criticism from Newcastle fans lately after some poor mistakes in Premier League games and he needed to have a big performance against PSG to restore some confidence in his own ability.

It’s no secret that Pope’s biggest weakness is playing with the ball at his feet, but what he lacks in that area he certainly makes up for with his shot-stopping ability.

At his best, Pope is one of the greatest shot-stoppers in the league and can definitely be the difference maker in big games like this.

Eddie Howe will be hoping that this gives the 31-year-old a huge boost heading into some key games in the next few weeks against Manchester United and AC Milan where he will surely need to be on top form once again.