Thierry Henry cannot see Arsene Wenger taking England job

By Thierry Henry, Football Expert @ThierryHenry

Image: Arsene Wenger enjoys the day-to-day challenge of club management, according to Thierry Henry

Thierry Henry believes Arsene Wenger is unlikely to want the England job because he enjoys managing Arsenal on a day-to-day basis.

England are looking for a new boss after Roy Hodgson stepped down following their Euro 2016 exit to Iceland.

Wenger has been mentioned as a possible candidate for the FA, but Henry thinks his former boss prefers the challenge of club management over international football.

Image: Roy Hodgson stepped down as England boss following their exit from Euro 2016

"What I love about Arsene is he loves being on the field on a daily basis and if you're a coach of a national team you're not out there on a daily basis," Henry told Sky Sports News HQ. "That's why I don't see that happening, but who knows?

"Arsene loves Arsenal and he's been there for a very long time. We don't see him leaving the club and we know the England role can be seen as the impossible job."

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Henry believes England can look to the example offered by Wales when picking their next manager.

Image: Wales manager Chris Coleman has guided his side into last four of Euro 2016

"I don't know what the philosophy is going to be but you need to have one and go forward with it," he added.

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"There shouldn't be any problem with an English manager. Look at Chris Coleman. If Wales can do it, England should be able to find someone who can provide them with a competitive team."

England managed to score just four goals in four matches at Euro 2016, and crashed out after a 2-1 defeat to Iceland in the last 16.

Image: England scored four goals in four matches at Euro 2016

Henry pointed to the team's "lack of creativity" as a crucial reason behind their elimination, but once again suggested Wales' progress could be used as a template for future success.

"It's easy to say now but it wasn't easy for England to break down Iceland or Slovakia and against Wales they struggled at times, and I think the lack of creativity was key," Henry continued. "It's not easy to play against teams that sit and they had to deal with that the whole tournament.

"I remember saying they would be OK against Iceland because I thought if a team could deal with direct play and long balls, it would be England. I knew it wasn't going to be easy but I think the lack of creativity was there to see.

Image: Jack Wilshere started one England game at Euro 2016

"Jack Wilshere maybe wasn't fit enough - he was growing into the tournament - and Wayne Rooney didn't have a good enough game, but to be fair, the team didn't have a good game. There was a lack of ideas.

"But is there something wrong with the character of the players? There's more money in England but at the start of the tournament, everyone was excited about the team and the young talent.

"Now suddenly there's a problem with attitude. But I would go back to Wales - they had a philosophy, those guys came through the English system and they don't have a problem.

Image: Wales beat Belgium in the quarter-final of Euro 2016

"It is true that a lot of today's players have more than what players used to have, but there is more money in the game.

"At Arsenal the kids don't clean the boots and some of them are getting paid more than I was when I was a world champion.

"I also remember when you used to have to win the league, play well in the Champions League and perform for a couple of years before you won an international cap. 

"We used to have kit that the pros didn't want anymore, now some U18s have the same car as players in the first team - but the world has moved on and it's difficult to compare times."

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