Thierry Henry: Thierry Henry, the legendary French striker for France, has been appointed head coach of the national Under-21 team through 2025. The French Football Federation announced in a statement on Monday. The legendary Arsenal player will captain the team in Paris for the Olympic Games in the following year. Sylvain Ripoll was fired following France’s early elimination from the European Under-21 Championship this year. Gerald Baticle, a former manager of the Angers, will become an assistant coach in Henry’s staff.
Thierry Henry back into management
Henry, the second-highest scorer in French history, will go back into management after serving as Belgium’s assistant coach after the World Cup. Other applicants for the position reportedly included Sabri Lamouchi, the former manager of Cardiff, as reported by Le Parisien.
Henry, though, was chosen as the front-runner and has been selected by the French FA. In a statement, they confirmed he has signed a two-year deal to become the new under-21 manager. The statement said, ‘Thierry Henry has been appointed as the new France U21 manager, up until 2025.’
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‘The former French international will lead Les Bleuets through the upcoming qualifying campaign for the 2025 U21 Euros, as well as Olympic Games in Paris in 2024.’
Henry’s stint begins in September
Henry will lead the Under-21s for the first time on September 7 in a friendly match against Denmark. Four days later, on September 8, France will play Slovenia in the Euro qualifying round. Next summer will also see Henry lead a French under-23 side at their home Olympics in Paris. France have already qualified for the tournament as hosts. They will be looking to build on their group stage exit in Tokyo.
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The 46-year-old, also a former Barcelona player, previously coached Arsenal’s youth teams, AS Monaco in Ligue 1 and Montreal in Major League Soccer. Henry ended his playing career in 2014 as the all-time leading scorer for Arsenal – 228 goals – and after earning 123 caps and netting 51 goals for France.
The role is Henry’s first as a manager since leaving Montreal Impact in 2021. He has been out of coaching since last year’s World Cup, where he was an assistant to then Belgium boss Roberto Martinez.
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