Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has admitted that he would be interested in the United States men’s national team coaching job. The former Gunners, Barcelona and New York Red Bulls star striker has been in coaching since 2015.
CBS Sports host Kate Abdo asked Henry directly about the job opportunity during their Champions League coverage on Paramount+ on Wednesday. “Would I put my name in the hat? First and foremost, that’s a tricky one to talk about,” said Henry. “Roberto Martinez went to coach Portugal and I’m not going with him. Being a number two is no longer something I would like to do.”
“Massive respect for the boss, he gave me an opportunity when no one else did. I’d like to have a crack [at management] again.”
Former striker has coaching experience in MLS
Henry has held managerial roles twice before, but neither were particularly successful. He managed to win just four of 20 total matches during his spell with Monaco in 2018. He then moved to Montreal Impact the following year. Henry collected just nine victories in 29 games with the Major League Soccer outfit. However, the former striker admitted that conditions were difficult in Montreal because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We talked about it the other day about how tough it was in Montreal because of COVID. We played every game away from home. That was tough, I’ll be honest,” admitted Henry. Because international borders closed, Montreal had to play a portion of their home matches in New Jersey.
“Do I know the [American] players? Yeah, I know the players. Do I know the league? Yeah, I know the league,” also declared Henry. “It’s a different ballgame to talk about it now like that, but would I want to be a manager at any level? Yes, of course, that’s something I would want to do.”
Henry wants clarification on USMNT direction
The legend also admitted that he would need to discuss the direction of the team with U.S. Soccer before potentially committing to the job. “But to go back to the U.S. national team and the U.S. in general, what’s the plan? What’s the philosophy? What do you want to be?”
Fellow Paramount+ contributor Jamie Carragher followed up Henry’s remarks on the USMNT job by imploring U.S. Soccer to consider the former Arsenal striker. “U.S. Soccer come on,” cried Carragher. “You know what you’ve got to do! Appoint the man!”
The USMNT is currently being run by interim head coach Anthony Hudson. Former head coach Gregg Berhalter is still under investigation for a domestic violence incident and his future with the team is in the air. Hudson will remain as interim boss for the near future.
PHOTO: IMAGO / Fotoarena
