Henry in advanced talks to become Bordeaux’s new manager
Thierry Henry is close to taking his first job in football management after holding talks with the French Ligue 1 side Bordeaux.
The position has become available after Gus Poyet, the former Brighton and Sunderland manager, was suspended by the club for publicly criticising the owners, calling them “a disgrace”. Henry became interested in the vacancy but wanted assurances that he would be backed in the transfer market so that he could make his mark at the club.
It would be his first spell as the No 1 in charge, having worked as assistant to Roberto Martinez as they guided Belgium to third-place at the World Cup in Russia, the nation’s best ever result.
Henry, 41, announced in July that he would be stepping down as a Sky Sports pundit to pursue a job in management. The former striker had previously combined television duties with his coaching position with Belgium.
The possibility of taking over at Bordeaux emerged when Poyet reacted furiously following a Europa League win against FC Mariupol,
after striker Gaetan Laborde was sold to rivals Montpellier. Poyet was suspended by the club and Eric Bedouet deputised in his absence, oversee- ing a defeat to Toulouse on Sunday.
The circumstances of Poyet’s outburst prompted Henry to seek assurances that he would be able to have an influence over the comings and goings at the club were he to join them.
Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who signed Henry from Juventus in 1999 and made him into a global star, first revealed the player’s interest in the job. “Yes he wants to do it,” Wenger told the Coriscan newspaper Corse Matin on Monday. “He is intelligent and he has the qualities.”
The appointment could be delayed, with Bordeaux in the process of being sold to a Usbased investment fund, meaning the new owners would need to sign it off.
Provided it goes ahead, Henry will face former Arsenal team-mate Patrick Vieira, who is now in charge of Ligue 1 side Nice, at the end of October.
Bordeaux travel to Belgian side Gent for a Europa League play-off this evening.
Henry made 254 appearances for Arsenal between 1999 and 2007 and won 123 caps for France, being part of the squad which won the World Cup in 1998 and the European Championship two years later.