Henry officially handed 1st managerial gig at Monaco

AS Monaco officially announced the appointment of Thierry Henry as the club's new manager on Saturday.

Henry replaces Leonardo Jardim after putting pen to paper on a three-year contract. The former Arsenal star will officially take charge on Monday alongside coaching staff that includes Joao Carlos Valado Tralhao and Patrick Kwame Ampadu.

Shortly after Monaco announced his hiring, Henry posted a statement on Twitter: "It is with great pride that I am delighted to announce that I have accepted the position to become the manager of AS Monaco FC.

"I was fortunate to receive some very attractive offers over the last few months but Monaco will always be close to my heart. Having started my footballing career with this great club, it seems like fate that I will now begin my managerial career here too.

"I'm incredibly excited to be given this opportunity but now the hard work must begin. Can't wait."

After being linked with various openings around Europe, such as Bordeaux and Aston Villa, Henry opted to take charge of a club that's struggled to replicate the form that saw Monaco finish in the top three - including a Ligue 1 title in 2017 - in each of the last five season since winning promotion in 2013.

Monaco sit 18th place in the league after securing just one win and three draws in the opening nine matches of the season.

The 41-year-old kicked off his legendary career on the pitch in 1993 with Monaco, and went on to score 28 goals in 141 appearances. A year before lifting the World Cup with France, Henry helped Monaco capture their sixth league title in club history during the 1996-97 campaign by scoring nine goals in 36 matches.

From Monaco, Henry went on to represent Juventus for a season before joining Arsenal where he established himself as a club legend during his eight season in north London.

At Arsenal, Henry won a pair Premier League title and FA Cups en route to becoming the club's all-time leading scorer with 228 goals (175 league goals) in 377 matches.

He enjoyed a spell at Barcelona before finishing his career in North America with the New York Red Bulls.

Henry was the assistant coach under manager Roberto Martinez during Belgium's run at the World Cup last summer in Russia where the Red Devils finished third.