Ahead of Sunday’s conference final opener vs. the New England Revolution, Red Bulls star Thierry Henry took at shot at some Q&A with Post columnist Steve Serby.



Q: Why do you love New York so much?



A: I like the rough part of it, ’cause you can say what you want to say. People speak their mind.

Q: Have you always been that way?



A: I’m always like this. I’m not going to smile if something isn’t funny. I’m a genuine guy, don’t get me wrong, but I’m not the type of guy that’s going to smile just to make you happy. If your joke is not funny, it isn’t funny. I will usually tell you what’s in my mind.

Q: You like going to Broadway shows, right?



A: Yeah, I love it.

Q: What’s the last one you saw?



A: I went to see “Motown.”

Q: Good?



A: It was very good. Very good, because it’s not actually easy to be Diana Ross, or to do Marvin Gaye. I’m not going to go back into the history of Motown, but it’s amazing. … I love the fact you can do whatever at any time in New York, any type of food you want, any shows, any art gallery … whatever. I like that.

Q: Are you recognized in the city?



A: In New York yes, because it’s New York City. You have a lot of Europeans, a lot of Latinos, they follow the game, and so especially in New York, people are more open. … When I go to Arizona, I can walk a bit more free there, because they love their American football, they love their basketball, University of Arizona is amazing. I would say maybe the people that have a background from Mexico, they will recognize me because of them loving the game of futbol.

Q: Do you like being recognized?



A: Actually, that’s the part of the game that I don’t particularly like, but I understand that’s the way it is. I’ve said it too many times, and people think it’s like I’m trying to be humble, or whatever: I just kick a ball, that happens to be my passion, and obviously there is money, so I can live from it and off it, I understand that. But I didn’t fight for my country to be able to be free. I didn’t save the life of anyone. Those people are allowed to walk like, “Hey, I’ve done something.” I just see myself as a normal guy — no more, no less.

Q: But you’ve been called a legend in the sporting arena. How do you feel about that?



A: Thank you, but that’s it. That’s me though. I understand it, don’t get me wrong. I did learn recently how to embrace it. For me, I just want to go out there and try to perform. I wanted to make my family proud at the very beginning. I was like, “Oh my dad’s gonna come and see me!” And then after obviously the fans of the team that I play for, and my teammates, and so be it. I wasn’t going like, “Oh, they call me this, they call me that!” I don’t see myself like that.

Q: Sometimes you play angry?



A: I play better when I’m angry. People crumble sometimes when people boo them, or there is a little something that doesn’t go their way. Usually, throughout my career, when people were booing me or having a go at me, I like it.

Q: You started Stand Up Speak Up, to battle prejudice in your sport.



A: Because back in the days it was always people saying, “Oh, I heard this, black this, black that, Muslim this, Muslim that … whatever. Everybody was, “Oh, it’s OK, they’re not going to change it,” you know? No, it’s not OK. We have a voice. You need the fans, you need the referee — but you definitely need the players to play a game. So, enough is enough. Enough of, “Oh, it’s OK, we usually hear it, let’s talk about the game.” So at one point, I just said, “No, enough is enough. We have a voice, and we should actually talk about it and say something.” That was to create awareness, and therefore when you create awareness, people do have to follow. Once you talk about it, you’re forcing whoever is in charge, to fine the club. … By talking, you make sure that people need to act.

Q: How much racism did you experience?



A: Oh, a lot. A lot. But like I said to you, it became kind of normal, because nobody was saying anything, nobody was dealing with it.

Q: What was the worst racist experience you ever had?



A: Oh, everything. Spitting … when you go and take a corner kick, you’re just by the fans … black … black … black … monkey chains. The whole stadium sometimes. And you’re supposed to stay composed. And you’re supposed to stay calm. I didn’t [lose my cool], but some players did. When a player loses it, then what you hear on TV is, “You should know better, you shouldn’t lose it, he’s a role model.” What?

Q: Why didn’t you lose it?



A: Because I said to you, when they do that, I play better.

Q: With the Red Bulls, you haven’t encountered any of that.



A: No. I have to say in the U.S. never, the only thing you hear is like, “Oh go back to New Yawk,” when you play Philly, or when you play Boston, the usual rivalry that you have.

Q: What was your favorite memory from playing for Arsenal in the Premier League?



A: Whenever we got to lift the trophy as a team at the end of it. Because you suffer during the season. You go through pain, joy … but nothing can beat celebrating a title as a team. Nothing.

Q: What drives you?



A: To play the right way. To play the game the right way. I’m a San Antonio Spurs fan. They play basketball the right way. If someone is in a better position, forget about having your triple-double, or your hat trick … pass the damn ball.

Q: You are friends with Tony Parker, who is a point guard.



A: I don’t consider myself as a point guard or anything, I just try to play the game like it should be played. If I’m the guy that has to finish it, then I will try to finish it. But you have to try to do — how can I put that into words? — what the game is asking you. If sometimes you have to clear it, them you have to clear it. It’s not only beauty. You have to try to do what the game is asking you to do at the time.

Q: But you also are praised for your creativity. Do you pride yourself on that?



A: No, not really. For me, at times, it’s obvious. So, if I have to make a pass, most of the people can make that pass. Half of them don’t want to, because they want glory. I’m not pretending that I’m creative or whatever, I just sometimes happen to see something, and I just pass it.

Q: Was there a time in your career when you sought glory?



A: No, because I always have been a striker that always gives assists. In my career, if you look at wherever I played, I always have a big number of assists, because for me, sometimes you make the team because that’s how it is, but sometimes also you have to share it. You have to share it because it’s part of the game, because we’re a team — you lose as a team and you win as a team. But people sometimes like the, “We win as a team,” and then sometimes we lose, “You lost, I scored, I was OK today, I played well.” I’m always thinking about what I didn’t do well, so when I haven’t done well, and so even when we win, the guys will tell you, if you look at what I’ve been saying since I’ve been here … sometimes we won a game 4-1, and you will see me saying, “We shouldn’t have won.” I’m thinking always about what can we do better in the next game. The goal has to mean something. If you lose 4-3, and you score a hat trick, they’re useless, useless goals.

Q: You’re all about the team.



A: I don’t think I’m about the team, I think the game is about the team. You have to be educated to play the right way, so for me, I’m not going to take any credit on that. Zero, actually. I’m just trying to do what the game is asking me to do. If I was playing tennis, then it’s another story.

Q: What is your mentality on the field?



A: I’m a pain.

Q: In what way?



A: Because, as you can imagine, if I don’t make the right pass, I want to shoot myself. I’m very demanding of myself — very, very demanding. So you can imagine how demanding I can be with someone else. So, I’m a pain, yeah, but always for the good of the game.

Q: Who are athletes in other sports who play the right way?



A: I remember back in the days Michael Jordan used to score always 50, 60, 45, 60, 40, 50, 60 — no championship. Scottie Pippen came, Horace Grant, John Paxson, then Steve Kerr, then B.J. Armstrong. … Then he’s scoring 30 — still being Michael Jordan, don’t get me wrong — but he could trust his teammates, and his teammates could trust him, too. It became a team effort, and obviously, who is going to make you win in the crucial moments? Him. But suddenly, he had a team. That’s why I go back to: When you have a team, anything can be better. … Dennis Bergkamp … I played with him for seven years [with Arsenal], and I was always amazed on how he could stuff alone. He could bend a ball from 30 yards top corner, dribble past four, five … but every single time, he was always trying to respect the game.

Q: If you didn’t know how old you were, how old would you think you are?



A: Right now, 63 (laugh).

Q: But when you’re on the field, you don’t feel like an old man.



A: No, I don’t. I feel the 20 years that I’ve been playing. I feel like my body is like where it should be.

Q: How much longer do you want to play?



A: I don’t know, it depends on my body, so we’ll see.

Q: What was that like winning the ’98 World Cup for France?



A: It was outstanding because it was more than winning the World Cup. The country came together, whether people were Muslim, Catholic, black — wherever you were coming from, everybody was proud to be French. And it was more than a sports victory. It was kind of a human type of, “Let’s live together, we all love each other.” It didn’t last long, but for a little while, that was happening. And that’s why sometimes sports can break any barrier that you can have out there. It was also extra special, I’ll be honest, because the stadium is like 15 miles away from where I grew up. You dream about winning the World Cup, and then suddenly you find yourself winning it, 15 miles away, from where you grew up. You might not believe what I’m gonna say, but I still didn’t yet celebrate it too much. Because, in the game, you know how it is: You’re champion, the day after you’re not champion anymore, you have to defend that.

Q: Describe the neighborhood you grew up in.



A: My mom and my dad always made me feel that it was the best place in the world. Yes, it was rough, yes it was. Did I see some stuff that I shouldn’t have seen? Yes. But my parents always made me believe that I was in the best place that I could be. My parents were already strict in, “Don’t go out, don’t do this, when you step out of a school you gotta be here five minutes after.”

Q: When your parents divorced, how did it affect you?



A: I could see my mom and I could see my dad. I’m sure you notice that in the way you talk to me, I always like to take the positive out of the negative. You have some guys in this world that never saw their dad, or never saw their mom, for whatever reason, so I still have my dad and I still have my mom, so there was nothing to cry about.

Q: Your daughter is 9, your son is 2. Did fatherhood change you in any way?



A: You know when your dad says to you, or your mom, “ You will see when you’re gonna have some kids,” and you’re like, “Yeah, whatever.”

Q: But they were right.



A: You start to understand a lot of stuff, like it’s not about you anymore. Little stuff — I was never scared on the plane, and I’m not scared on the plane, but now, when the plane moves, I go like, “Oh, what about if I couldn’t see my kids anymore?”

Q: Do you change diapers?



A: Oh yeah.

Q: Any good?



A: He can’t complain right now, so I guess I’m good (laugh).

Q: You attend Knicks games. You know Spike Lee?



A: I didn’t know that he liked the team I used to play for, Arsenal. I arrived at Madison Square Garden, and I saw him there with an Arsenal jersey on. I think it was 2001. I was like, “What?”

Q: What do you like best about this Red Bulls team?



A: What I like is the way we reacted recently … where the games have been difficult, we showed character and commitment. That’s one thing that we didn’t show in the past for some different reasons. Since I’ve been here, sometimes we didn’t handle difficult moments in the game well. You’re always gonna have moments in the game where the team that you’re playing against will be on top of you, for five, 20, maybe the whole game. It doesn’t mean that you have to concede or lose the game, or break down. I thought this year, especially down the stretch, we managed those moments better.

Q: How much fun has playing with the Red Bulls been for you?



A: When you win, it’s always fun. When you don’t, there’s no fun. Period. Whether you play for Arsenal, with my friend, or with my dad. When I don’t win, it’s not funny. When you win then you have fun.

Q: You are a bad loser, right?



A: I don’t know any good loser. Sorry.

Q: What is your game day routine?



A: I eat pasta before a game. I couldn’t even call it a routine, it’s just like a habit that I have.

Q: What would it mean to win a championship with the Red Bulls?



A: The team will have finally won, that’s what it means?

Q: What would that mean to you to be part of …



A: I never think me. So the team finally will have one. So that’s the most important thing for me.

Q: Why do you think you have been so successful in futbol?



A: I would say I’m very committed, a lot of desire. … I always try to stay true to the game in terms of when you play, in terms of the pass you have to make … I go back to what I told you before. Usually, the game won’t come back and bite you if you do that.

Q: Haven’t you been called the Michael Jordan of Europe?



A: I will not agree with that. I said to you I see myself only as a guy that tried to do what the game is asking you to do. That’s it.

Q: How much do you have left at 37?



A: I have a lot left. I have a lot in my brain to give. Even when my legs won’t be around.

Q: As a boy growing up, what was your dream in futbol? What did you want to accomplish?



A: My first-ever thing was to make sure that if someone gives me an opportunity to play, that whoever that was going to be, that coach at the time would have turned and said to me, “That kid can.”

Q: Three dinner guests?



A: Muhammad Ali, Nelson Mandela and my dad.

Q: Why Ali?



A: Michael Jordan is there, but for me Ali just is a tiny bit higher just because of the stuff that he used to say before people wanted to, not kill him, but they were like, “Oh, why is he saying this?” and now he is famous for it. And the way he used to get into the head of his opponents. He won the fight before fighting. On top of everything — don’t get me wrong, he was an amazing boxer — but the whole character with it.

Q: Why Mandela?



A: For him to teach me how you can forgive after all that he had to suffer from. How do you do that? How do you pass the point of all that suffering, and … it’s not easy to forgive. And to forget. And he became a better man.