Lukaku worked with Thierry Henry in the Belgian national side
Romelu Lukaku has opened up about the “old-school” methods of Arsenal legend Thierry Henry, who is now in the running for the Wales managerial position. The Football Association of Wales (FAW) parted ways with Rob Page after a stint of over three years at the helm, following Wales’ failure to secure a spot in Euro 2024.
BBC Sport has reported that Henry is among the candidates being considered to take over as the head coach of the national team.
Henry, who has managed at Monaco and Montreal Impact, is currently overseeing the France Under-21s side and is gearing up the Olympic squad for the upcoming Games in Paris next month. FAW chiefs are reportedly eager to appoint a high-profile figure, and Belgium striker Lukaku has previously spoken out about Henry’s demanding coaching style.
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Henry served on the coaching staff for the Belgian national team from 2016 to 2018 and again during 2021-22. Lukaku, who was striving to enhance his goalscoring prowess for Belgium, has reminisced about Henry’s “very old school and very strict” regime that aimed to elevate his game, reports Wales Online.
Following a Champions League semi-final last year, Lukaku, in a conversation with CBS, admitted he missed Henry’s guidance in the Belgian setup, acknowledging the strictness of his approach.
Reflecting on Henry’s mentorship, Lukaku commented: “Very, very old school, very strict. When we met I was in the last season at Everton, I think. To be honest I told him that I want to hear it from you, give me the business, what can I do better?
The pair worked closely together over a split four year period
“We sat together every day for that training camp for eight days, two days watching scouts of every game, every clip. There your touch was bad, there you did well. It was always half and half.
“Then from there I had my best year in the Prem, from there in the national team I started scoring every game. I’m very grateful to him, he still does it today, I like it. Tough coaches that tell me the real things that I want to hear. You don’t want to be pampered all the time, I think.”
Speaking about Lukaku, Henry himself has said: “He’s a pain in the you know what, but in a good way, I was the same.
“It’s always for the good of the team, you always try to challenge everybody. Me, the coach, his teammates, himself. At times he’s very critical of himself and that’s why sometimes he can bring himself down because he doesn’t see the positive side of it.”
It seems like Wales may need to prepare for some hard truths and relentless scrutiny if they are considering hiring a big name like Henry as their squad’s manager.
Source: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1915231/Thierry-Henry-Romelu-Lukaku-Wales