The old favourite to take the reigns at Aston Villa, Thierry Henry, has officially rejected the chance to take over as manager of the Championship side. This has blown the race for the Villa job wide open and leaves Henry on the cusp of taking a job in France.
Monaco are thought to have placed their former player on a three-man shortlist as they consider sacking current gaffer Leonardo Jardim. Henry is understandably keener to move to the south of France rather than the Midlands, but this has meant a new favourite is now in place for the Villa job.
Former Manchester United right-hand man, Rui Faria is now the odds-on favourite for the job having been tipped to move into senior management in recent years. Once Arsene Wenger had left Arsenal, he surged to the top three of the betting for that job, although of course the Gunners eventually handed the gig to former PSG boss Unai Emery.
But now Faria could finally get his hands on a prestigious managerial position having leapfrogged both Henry and John Terry in the betting. The 43-year-old has never held a permanent position as a manager but has an incredible CV, helping teams such as Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid, Chelsea and of course, United.
As Jose Mourinho’s assistant he appears to have learned a thing or two during his time as a number two and he could well now get the chance to prove himself as his own manager and test himself in the most competitive league in the world.
