Monaco have re-appointed Leonardo Jardim as the club’s manager following the sacking of Thierry Henry, the club announced on Friday, KweseESPN reports.
Jardim has signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with the Ligue 1 side and will officially take over the team on Sunday.
In a statement issued on the Monaco website, CEO and Vice-President Vadim Vasilyev was candid about the reasons behind the change of leadership.
“Our club is going through a very challenging period. I am ready to admit that I personally bear the responsibility for this,” Vasilyev said.
“We have to acknowledge that during the summer transfer window, we sold too many key players and, despite considerable investments, mistakes were made with respect to their replacement. This did not allow us to create a new, competitive team. The decision to dismiss Leonardo Jardim was also premature.
“Leonardo Jardim’s time at AS Monaco, as I said when he departed, would be remembered as one of the brightest chapters in the club’s history. Today we realise that the story of Leonardo Jardim at the club did not end as it was meant to. Leonardo should have been given an opportunity to continue his job.
“Thierry Henry is a football legend but due to a very unfavourable mix of circumstances, including, above all, numerous injuries to our players, hampered him from quickly and effectively leading the team out of the crisis. I want to express my gratitude to Thierry Henry for accepting this challenge and trying to lead the team of his former club during such a difficult period. He would have probably needed more time to implement his plans. From our perspective, unfortunately, we do not have this time. We need to act without delay.
“Therefore, we have made a decision to end our partnership with Thierry Henry.”
Jardim, who won the Ligue 1 title in 2017, was sacked as Monaco boss on October 11, leaving the club in the relegation zone after five defeats in their first nine games.
He was replaced by Henry, but the former Monaco player was himself sacked on Thursday after failing to turn around the club’s fortunes. Henry won just four times in his 20-match tenure, losing 11, and he left the club 19th in Ligue 1.
Henry’s short tenure was beset by problems and he had to apologise for verbally abusing a Strasbourg player towards the end of his spell as manager.
