New York Red Bulls striker Thierry Henry was pleasantly surprised by the performance of Michael Bustamante in the weekend's 2-0 win over Toronto FC.
The Colombian midfielder, who joined the Red Bulls via the MLS Supplemental Draft at the start of the year, stepped into the vacancy left by Tim Cahill and Lloyd Sam and created a handy combination with Dax McCarty for the clash with the Canadian club.
23-year old Bustamante, in just his fourth MLS appearance, was involved in Henry's opening goal and his overall performance was not lost on the former Arsenal superstar.
"The story of the game for me was how Bustamante played," said Henry.
"You have to give him credit because it's not always easy to be on the side all the season and play in the reserves some times when they do have some games and try to stay fit and just try to be on the side with the guys [saying], 'Well done.' But definitely, not participating is not easy and then suddenly you've got to play.
"I thought at times he played pretty well. Dax had a great awareness on the goal but that first pass that [Bustamante] played was vital, so you have to give him credit for that because I know when you feel like you're not part of the team because you're not often in the squad, but great attitude, great performance for me from his part."
