Thierry Henry has told AFP that Arsene Wenger is too "hands on" to give up his job at Arsenal and take charge of a national team.
The Football Association (FA) has yet to appoint a permanent replacement for Sam Allardyce, whose reign as England boss lasted just one game.
Wenger, 67, is currently under contract at Arsenal until the end of the season and has suggested he would be open to the England job should he leave the club.
However, after playing under Wenger for eight years and also working briefly as Arsenal's youth-team coach, Henry -- echoing recent comments from former teammate Robert Pires -- said his fellow Frenchman would miss the day-to-day work of a club manager.
"You can never say never, but I don't see it happening," Henry, who last summer left Arsenal to join new Belgium coach Roberto Martinez's staff, said. "I said recently that Arsene likes being on the pitch on a daily basis, and that's not the case when you coach a national team."
England under-21 boss Gareth Southgate, who has taken caretaker charge following Allardyce's surprise exit, is the favourite to secure the role but FA chief executive Martin Glenn has indicated to BBC Radio 5 Live that nothing has been decided.
"The preference would be for [an English manager] because the missing link I think in getting consistent England performances in tournaments is linked to this issue of fear and pride, so the team identity," he said.
"I don't want to rule out candidates who are not English that would also be terrific and also wanted to do the job for the long term. It would be crazy to narrow the pool so much, but our preference would be for English."
Wenger has also said he believes the job should go to an English manager.