Thierry Henry Named New France Under-21 Coach

• Thierry Henry named U-21 coach for France, succeeding Ripoli; to lead team for 2024 Olympics and 2025 Euro qualification
• Former France forward Henry appointed U-21 coach, tasked with major goals including Olympics and European Championship qualification

Thierry Henry, a former France forward, has been appointed coach of the country’s under-21 team on a two-year contract.

Sylvain Ripoli is succeeded by the Arsenal legend who helped France win the World Cup on home soil in 1998.

Henry, 46, has worked as an assistant coach for Belgium twice and has managed Monaco and Montreal Impact.

He will lead France’s Under-23 team at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, which the French Football Federation (FFF) has described as a “major goal.”

Henry will also lead the under-21 team’s bid to qualify for the 2025 European Championship.

Gerald Baticle, a former Auxerre U19 and Angers coach, will join Henry’s staff as an assistant.

According to the FFF, it is in a “phase of discussions” about a new under-21 coach and has “studied several profiles of French technicians.”

Henry scored 51 goals in 123 games for France, helping the country win the European Championship in 2000.

He returned to Belgium’s coaching staff in May 2021 as an assistant coach under Roberto Martinez, but was not retained when Domenico Tedesco succeeded Martinez in February 2023.

On August 31, Henry will name his first squad for a friendly against Denmark (7 September) and a Euro U21 qualifier against Slovenia (11 September).

10-man Arsenal sink Crystal Palace to extend perfect start

Arsenal shrugged off Takehiro Tomiyasu’s red card to extend their perfect start to the Premier League season as Martin Odegaard sealed a 1-0 victory against Crystal Palace on Monday.

Odegaard’s second-half penalty at Selhurst Park put Arsenal on course for their second successive win.

But Mikel Arteta’s side had to dig deep to preserve the points after Japan defender Tomiyasu was controversially sent off for a second yellow card midway through the second half.

Tomiyasu had been booked for taking too long over a throw-in before his dismissal for making minimal contact on Jordan Ayew.