Thierry Henry and not Zinedine Zidane was Bermuda soccer coach Kenny Thompson's pick for FIFA World Footballer of the Year.

The coveted award was handed to the Real Madrid midfielder at a star-studded ceremony in Switzerland yesterday after the votes of coaches throughout the world - including Thompson's - were tallied.

Zidane, who had won the award twice previously, pipped Arsenal striker Henry and Real's Brazilian ace Ronaldo to the top spot. The Frenchman received 264 votes with countryman Henry getting 186 and Ronaldo 176.

Thompson, an avid follower of European soccer, was asked for his top three recently and went for Henry followed by another Madrid star, Brazilian Roberto Carlos, and AC Milan's Ukranian hitman Andrej Shevchenko.

“Henry has had a fantastic couple of years,” said Thompson yesterday explaining the reasons behind his votes. “In 2003 he just seemed to get better.

“He is a fantastic player - perfect technique, total mastery of the ball, he is very creative and tricky and extremely agile and epitomises the athleticism that is part of the modern day game and certainly will be part of the game of the future.”

Thompson said one of Henry's most important attributes was his commitment to the cause.

“He is a team player,” he said. “He is not just an individualist. He is capable of individual actions but possesses a team mentality. I think the goals for (Robert) Pires and (Freddie) Ljungberg that he set up last week against Lokomotiv (Moscow in the Champions League) illustrate that.”

Thompson said Henry was an example to all aspiring Bermudian footballers.

“I do speak a lot about Arsenal at the moment - they are a fantastic team,” he said. “And it's players like Thierry Henry that I use as examples, not just for youth players but for senior players as well.

“It is important to acknowledge his team work ethic. Against Lokomotiv he ran 50 or 60 yards to defend, chasing three players in the process. He certainly doesn't have to because he makes his living scoring goals but he understands that he is also required at times to defend.”

As well as playing well in the English Premiership and in Europe, Thompson said Henry was a key component of the French national team.

“He was very instrumental in France regaining the Confederations Cup in 2003, so I thought he was, for me, the player of the year,” he said.

While acknowledging Zidane's ability, Thompson said he felt he fell somewhat short of Henry's achievements and had not hit the heights he had previously.

“I was anticipating the results today and I was certain that Thierry Henry would win,” he said. “I was a little bit disappointed that he didn't.

“Leading up to the announcement I was feeling a little bit of pride in being part of the process on a world stage and, before it was revealed, felt I had voted for the World Player of the Year, but second place is not bad.”

Thompson said Carlos and Shevchenko were two more players who had had outstanding years.

“I felt (Carlos) was very instrumental in Real Madrid's success, both from an attacking standpoint and also in defence as well,” he said. “I was wondering who to put in third place and to be honest if I had to do it again I would pick (Juventus') Pavel Nedved. After I sent my ballot in I thought he was number three but having said that Shevchenko has had a very good year and is currently banging the goals in for Milan.”

Overall, Thompson said he was happy with the way his votes stood up against the final rankings.

“When I looked at how I voted I had a second place, a fifth place and a tenth place - not bad,” he said.

Among other coaches, England's Sven Goran Eriksson put Carlos on top of the pile ahead of Manchester United's Ruud van Nistelrooy and Bayern Munich's Michael Ballack, while Germany's Rudi Voller had Nedved, van Nistelrooy and AC Milan's mercurial defender Paulo Maldini.

French coach Jacques Santini surprising left Henry out of his top three, going instead for Maldini, Carlos and another Real player, Raul, while Portugal's Brazilian coach Luiz Felipe Scolari went for Carlos, van Nistelrooy and Nedved.

Perhaps the most surprising choices for those who can call themselves the best soccer players on the planet came from the footballing backwaters of Chinese Taipei and the Solomon Islands. The former's coach Lee Po Houng opted for Takamatsu Daiki as his third place vote, while Solomon Islands' Matia Vave had Esala Masi.

If you are wondering who Daiki and Masi are then you are probably not alone. However, a quick search of the internet revealed the former plies his trade as a striker with Japanese J-League outfit Oita Trinita, while the latter plays in the National Soccer League in Australia and is Fiji's number one striker.

Zidane wins again

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