Thierry Henry Reportedly Set for Arsenal Academy Role

Arsenal’s all-time record goalscorer Thierry Henry will reportedly be handed the role of assistant manager with the club’s under-18 team next season. 

According to Goal (h/t Alex Wood of the Daily Star), the Frenchman will line up alongside current academy coach Kwame Ampadu after securing his UEFA A coaching license in March. The Gunners icon has been working on Sky Sports’ coverage of Premier League games as a pundit since retiring in December 2014.

Wood also reported that Henry has been working alongside young Arsenal players in order to achieve his coaching qualifications. He posted the following on social after completing the course:

"

Massive thanks to Osian Roberts @FAWCoachEd & Arsenal Academy for helping me pass my UEFA A Coaching Licence #proud pic.twitter.com/k71BCF4dwj

— Thierry Henry (@ThierryHenry) March 10, 2016"

There’s no denying the Frenchman would be a tremendous influence around the academy.

In addition to his success at Arsenal, Henry won the treble with Barcelona as well as two major tournaments with France, the World Cup in 1998 and the European Championships in 2000. It was the Premier League where he made his mark, though, rated by many as the finest footballer to ever feature in the competition.

Here’s a reminder of what he accomplished with Arsenal:

Appearances	377
Goals	228
Premier League Wins	2 (2001–02, 2003–04)
FA Cup Wins	3 (2001–02, 2002–03, 2004–05)

Running the rule over the current Arsenal academy staff, there aren’t any figures there who have represented the club at the highest level. In the first-team coaching setup, only Steve Bould, assistant to manager Arsene Wenger, has played under the Frenchman.

A former player who knows the fabric of the football club and has the gravitas of Henry will always be beneficial to have involved, and he would surely motivate the next generation of Arsenal stars even more.

IAN KINGTON/Getty Images

As is evident by this feature run by BT Sport Football recently, there is a clear way of doing things behind the scenes at Arsenal, something Henry, who spent eight years at the club, will be well versed in:

It’d be encouraging to see a figure like Henry out of the studio and back on the training pitch, too. While his insights into the game can often be fascinating, passing on his wisdom to the next generation is surely where he’s best utilised.

Arsenal could do with more figures from the Frenchman's generation around the club as they seek to instil a winning culture from the bottom up. While Henry’s Arsenal sides were aesthetically pleasing, they had substance too, a blend which saw them compete for the top honours in the game. With no league title in over a decade, the Gunners need to get that balance back.