The departure of Luis Castro as head coach of Al Nassr left the door open for a replacement to lead Cristiano Ronaldo‘s team. The club’s board have already moved to hire an experienced profile.
According to journalist Fabrizio Romano, Stefano Pioli will be the new coach of Ronaldo’s Al Nassr and is traveling to Riyadh with his agents to formalize the deal with the Saudi club after his last experience as AC Milan coach, which ended last May.
Ronaldo greeted the Portuguese Castro on his social networks and is already preparing to welcome Pioli, the 19th coach of his career. The Italian has managed his entire career in his home country since 2003. He has only one title to his name, the Serie A 2021-22 with Milan.
Al Nassr have not had a good start in the Saudi Pro League, where they have drawn two games and managed one win in its first three matches. The decision to hire a new coach is in line with the goal of getting the team back on the winning track.
Stefano Pioli, former Coach of AC Milan, looks on prior to the Serie A TIM match between AC Milan and FC Internazionale at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on April 22, 2024 in Milan, Italy.
Pioli almost managed Al Ittihad
In mid-July this year, Stefano Pioli came very close to managing Cristiano Ronaldo’s former teammate Karim Benzema at Al Ittihad. According to rumors, the French striker opposed the arrival of the Italian coach and the club stopped negotiations.
see also
Cristiano Ronaldo reacts to the departure of Al Nassr coach Luis Castro
Al Nassr’s bad start to the 2024-25 season
Al-Nassr finished as runners-up in the Saudi Pro League last season, but started the current campaign with a heavy 4-1 drubbing in the Saudi Arabian Super Cup. Cristiano Ronaldo’s side opened the Saudi Pro League with a 1-1 draw against Al Raed and in the second matchday managed a 4-0 win over Al Feiha
On the third matchday, Al Nassr dropped points again with a draw against Al Ahli. The final straw for Luis Castro’s dismissal was their debut in the UFC Champions League Elite, which also ended in a 1-1 draw against Al Shorta without Ronaldo on the pitch.
