Thierry Henry believes his former France and Arsenal teammate Patrick Vieira will have great success coaching Major League Soccer in New York, Henry just wishes Vieira had picked a different club.
Vieira was unveiled this week as the coach to get New York City FC to the next level while Henry spent four years in MLS with the rival New York Red Bulls.
"He went to the wrong team," Henry told Sport 360. "I had hoped he would support Red Bulls and not NYCFC. But at the end of the day, I hope he has a good time there, a good career, and then comes back to Europe with a lot of experience."
Vieira was named as Jason Kreis' successor on Monday, agreeing a three-year deal that begins on Jan. 1, 2016.
#INSERT type:image caption:Thierry Henry backs his former teammate to succeed at NYCFC. END#
NYCFC finished a disappointing eighth in the Eastern Conference, 12 points short of a playoff spot in their debut season, despite adding talent such as David Villa, Andrea Pirlo and Frank Lampard.
Henry backed Vieira to turn things around.
"New York is a great town," Henry said. "He is going to love that. He is going to be coaching some guys I played against which will be funny. Hopefully he can change the way the team is," the French great said. "It was a massive disappointment for them not to make the playoffs. Patrick being there is hopefully something great for him and who knows what can happen after that."
When asked if he could join Vieira in a coaching role, Henry said: "I don't know...people do different things but I wish him all the very best, he deserves it.
"I just hope he's going to have a good time there, a good career and come back in Europe with a lot of experience."
Henry, France's all-time leading goalscorer, teamed up with Vieira to help Les Bleus win the 1998 World Cup
Henry featured in 123 games for France, scoring 51 times and Vieira won 107 caps.