Saudi football club Al-Ittihad sacks manager

Saudi Arabia’s Pro League football club Al-Ittihad has sacked manager Nuno Espirito Santo after losing 2-0 to Iraq’s Air Force Club in Erbil on Monday. The Asian Champions League fixture was the debut in the tournament for star signing and former Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema. The Jeddah-based club have won just six of their 12 league games this season.

Iraq’s Air Force Club beats Al-Ittihad in Iraq on Karim Benzema’s AFC Champions League debuthttps://t.co/Zv8nRxfzAl

— Iraqi News (@IraqiNews_com) November 7, 2023

According to reports, Benzema and former Tottenham Hotspur FC manager Santo had a heated “bust up” after the latest defeat. Revelo reported that the Ballon d’Or winner and the manager exchanged insults in the changing room after being beaten by Al-Quwa Al-Juwiya FC. The quarrel with the star player is seen to have been the final straw in Santo’s tenure at the club.

Thank you Nuno 🤝 pic.twitter.com/pFT5LvzZmR

— Ittihad Club (@ittihad_en) November 7, 2023

“The club has announced the end of its contract with Portuguese coach Nuno Santo,” said Al-Ittihad. “This decision comes after a comprehensive technical evaluation of the past phase during which he was in charge of coaching the first team.”

Benzema joined Al-Ittihad in June after ending a highly successful 14-year career at Real Madrid. He followed former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo, who became the first high profile name to join the Saudi Pro League, signing for Al-Nassr in December 2022 in a record-breaking transfer deal.

However, despite winning the Saudi title last season, it has been suggested that there had been a difficult relationship between Nuno and Benzema, which had “reached a point of no return.”

Assistant coach Hassan Khalifa will be in charge of the team as the club looks for a replacement. There is speculation that this might be a French manager to appease the French national Benzema, such as ex-Lyon boss Laurent Blanc or former Madrid legend and manager Zinedine Zidane.

READ: France accuses Karim Benzema of links to Muslim Brotherhood over Palestine solidarity