Henry leaves coaching role with France youth side
Thierry Henry has decided to step down from his role as coach of the France under-21 football team, the French Football Federation (FFF) announced Monday. Former France international Henry made the decision after guiding the under-23 side to a silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The all-time leading goalscorer for Premier League giants Arsenal took over as coach of the French youth side last summer and was under contract until June 2025 but decided to step away for "personal reasons", according to the FFF. Henry oversaw Les Bleuets' first run to the final of an Olympics men's tournament since winning gold in the 1984 Games in Los Angeles. His young side eventually went down 5-3 after extra time against Spain. The loss ended a promising run that had started inauspiciously after Henry was obliged to make several changes to his squad pre-tournament, due to the refusal of certain clubs to release their players for the Games. (AFP)