Thierry Henry steps down as France U21 manager

The Arsenal legend had led Les Bleus to a Silver medal in the Paris Olympics 2024.

Thierry Henry resigned as the head coach of the France U21 national team due to personal reasons. Less than a week ago France lost to Spain in the final of the gold medal match at the Paris Olympics.

After taking over as manager of the under-21 team in August of last year, the legendary former Arsenal player included several of his youngsters in the roster for France’s Olympics team this summer. In that competition, they succumbed to Spain 5-3 in the gold medal match after extra time.

Before taking the French squad through to the Olympics final, where men’s football teams are allowed to nominate a 21-man roster that is all under the age of 23, barring three players, Henry won four of his six matches in charge of the Under-21s.

In a statement released through the French Football Federation, Henry said: “I would like to thank the FFF and the president Philippe Diallo who offered me this incredible opportunity.

“Winning the silver medal at the Olympic Games for my country will remain one of the greatest prides of my life. I am incredibly grateful to the federation, the players, the staff and the supporters who allowed me to live a magical experience.”

Henry selected these three players who were overage: Jean-Philippe Mateta, an attacker for Crystal Palace, Alexandre Lacazette, a former great player for Arsenal, and Loic Balde, a winger for Sevilla. Mateta scored five goals to help France earn the silver medal.

Following his retirement the former Barcelona star commenced his coaching journey at the Arsenal U19 team. He then served as an assistant manager of the Belgium national team under Roberto Martínez before becoming AS Monaco’s head coach for a season.

He then took the reigns of Montreal Impact then returned as Belgium national team coach in 2021. This was all before becoming head coach of the France U21 team and leading them to the Olympic silver medal.

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