Royal reunification in the kingdom?
Cristiano Ronaldo (39) wants to win the championship in Saudi Arabia with Al-Nassr this season. At the start of the season, however, the team only managed a 1:1 draw against Al-Raed.
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A result that further increases the pressure on coach Luis Castro (62). The Portuguese has been coach of Ronaldo’s club since July last year and actually has a good record (35 won and only nine lost out of 51 competitive matches).
But: Al-Nassr currently has no chance in the duel with long-time rival Al-Hilal. The team of superstar Neymar (32) won the Saudi championship last season with a clear 14 points lead over Al-Nassr.
Castro’s horror statistics: out of five duels against Al-Hilal, four were lost, and Al-Nassr was only able to force a draw against Neymar’s team once.
video-heading">Just wowWhat Wirtz does with a football
Source: Instagram/AP/BILD27.08.2024
And: This season, the first match between the two clubs was also a complete disaster for Ronaldo’s team. Al-Hilal won the Super Cup final 4-1.
The result is said to have given the club bosses pause for thought. Zinédine Zidane (52) is now being considered as a possible successor to Castro.
The Spanish newspaper “Marca” reports that Ronaldo, whose opinion is important within the club, did not hesitate and, when asked, named Zidane as the ideal successor candidate.
Zinédine Zidane (M.) at the Olympic Games in Paris
Photo: Siphiwe Sibeko/REUTERS
With Real Madrid, the two won the Champions League three times in a row from 2016 to 2018.
With sporting director Fernando Hierro (56), another Real legend is part of the Saudi club’s sporting organization.
He played alongside Zidane at the Royal Club from 2001 to 2003. According to the report, however, the final decision rests with the club’s board of directors.
Teams from Saudi Arabia have already turned to Zidane several times in the recent past. However, the three-time world footballer is said to have had his eye on the job as French national coach for a long time.
After the Équipe Tricolore reached the semi-finals at the European Championships, it is clear that Didier Deschamps (55) will continue as national coach for the time being. It is therefore possible that Zidane will take the step into the desert after all…
