Thierry Henry ‘accepts’ Bordeaux manager role as Arsenal legend closes on first top job as Gus Poyet replacement
Former France forward and Belgium assistant left Sky Sports this summer and looks set to take on his first managerial role with Poyet yet to be formally sacked for sensational outburst
THIERRY HENRY has accepted the manager's job at Bordeaux, according to reports.
The Ligue 1 side are looking to replace Gus Poyet after his spectacular rant last week led the club to temporarily dismiss the Uruguayan.
Reports in France claim former Gunners team-mate Gilles Grimandi, who is now a scout at the Emirates, could be his assistant.
The Arsenal legend and World Cup winner is the current assistant for the Belgium national team but wants to pursue his own managerial career as a No1 and left Sky Sports this summer.
He was linked with replacing Steve Bruce at Aston Villa earlier in the summer but the Midlands club stuck with the 57-year-old, who led them to the Championship play-off final last season.
Henry was top of a list that included Jurgen Klinsmann, Remi Garde, Laurent Blanc and Michael Laudrup.
Klinsmann's last role was as the United States head coach, spending five years in charge between 2011 and 2016.
He was Germany boss between 2004 and 2016, taking the side to the semi-finals of the 2006 World Cup.
Two years later, he took over at Bayern Munich, but was sacked after less than ten months with the German giants third in the league.
It is understood former Aston Villa boss Garde was also on the list of potential candidates.
He is the coach at MLS side Montreal Impact after being appointed in November 2017.
Blanc, the former France and Paris Saint-Germain boss, was also in contention as well as Laudrup.
The Frenchman started his managerial career at Bordeaux, securing a league and cup double in 2008/09, but after three years was snapped up by the national team.
After two years at Swansea between 2012 and 2014, leading them to the League Cup in 2013, Laudrup has had spells at Lekhwiya and Al Rayyan in Qatar, leaving the latter earlier this year.
But it appears Bordeaux have managed to get their first choice, and Henry will be keen to develop a strong relationship with the board after the animosity surrounding Poyet's situation.
Poyet's position at the club is still unclear after his dramatic rant about the sale of Gaetan Laborde.
The club are set to hold talks with him on Friday to see if bridges can be rebuilt but it looks ominous for the former Brighton and Sunderland boss.
He said: "What happened with Gaëtan Laborde is a disgrace. I asked the club not to sell him until we bring in another player.
";They didn’t listen to me, they let Laborde leave. We arrived at the hotel today at 11.45am, Laborde was not there.
"We called him, he was at Montpellier. Nobody said anything to us. I will discuss with my agent tomorrow and then make a decision."
When questioned during the press conference about his job security, Poyet launched into another rant before claiming the club are "trying to kill me from behind to make me leave".
He said: "Who said that to you? A Bordeaux representative? I don’t give a f*** about these Bordeaux representatives. They tell you lies and you don’t have the cojones to say the truth."