CF Montreal not commenting on reports head coach Henry may be joining English club

Feb 17, 2021 | 11:20 AM

MONTREAL — CF Montreal says it will not comment after reports surfaced that head coach Thierry Henry may be moving to English club Bournemouth.

The MLS club said in an email that it would not comment on rumours after British tabloid The Daily Mirror reported that Bournemouth has pegged Henry as the front-runner to fill its vacant manager position.

The Sky Sports channel also reported that Bournemouth is targeting the former French international and wants to open discussions with Henry.

Bournemouth currently sit sixth in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English soccer, with 46 points in 29 games (12-7-10). The team fired manager Jason Tindall two weeks ago.

Tindall took over as head of the club from Eddie Howe following the club’s relegation to second division from the Premier League at the end of last season.

Henry, 43, is said to be on a shortlist for the Bournemouth job along with ex-Arsenal teammate Patrick Vieira, John Terry and David Wagner.

Henry, who also coached French side AS Monaco, joined Montreal in November 2019 and led the team to an 8-13-2 record in a 2020 season shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic. Montreal lost 2-1 to New England in the MLS Cup play-in round.

Because of border-crossing restrictions caused by the pandemic, Montreal played just four games at home last season. They moved their operations to Harrison, N.J., to finish the season.

His contract with the MLS club is set to expire in November.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 17, 2021.

The Canadian Press