Monaco

Thierry Henry has returned to his boyhood club Monaco to become manager of the Ligue 1 side.

Former Arsenal and Barcelona star Henry, linked with the Aston Villa job, said he turned down a number of 'attractive offers' before deciding Monaco was the job for him.

"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," said Henry on his Instagram page.

"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."

Europe's top divisions should follow the Premier League in closing their transfer windows before the season begins, according to Monaco vice-president Vadim Vasilyev.

He argues that allowing the window to remain open when the competitions start is "too stressful", with his club experiencing speculation over the future of star names Kylian Mbappe and Thomas Lemar right up to the deadline on August 31 this year.

Mbappe ultimately left for Paris St Germain on an initial loan deal while Lemar stayed despite a reported £90million offer from Arsenal on deadline day.

Premier League clubs voted last month to close the window at 5pm on the Thursday before the 2018-19 season starts, which will be August 9, 2018.

Clubs in the EFL have indicated that they would also be in favour of closing their transfer window early from next season.

The risk to Premier League clubs is that European rivals could still sign, or at least unsettle, their players if the continental window continues to run until the end of August.

But Vasilyev believes the English approach is right for everyone.

"The best thing would be for FIFA to take the initiative and limit the transfer period for all European clubs, let's say until July 31," he told Sky Sports News.

"It's too stressful for the clubs (at the moment). We've seen many examples; Lemar, (Kylian) Mbappe, (Philippe) Coutinho, (Ousmane) Dembele. I think it's not fair to allow changes to be made once the season starts.

"It's fine before the season starts but, once it's ongoing, you cannot compromise the team and the squad."