Cristiano Ronaldo to help Al Nassr lure Zinedine Zidane to Saudi Arabia

Cristiano Ronaldo is reported to be part of Al Nassr’s efforts to recruit Zinedine Zidane as their new manager.

Al Nassr confirmed on Thursday that they had parted ways with former boss Rudi Garcia, who is said to have clashed with Ronaldo behind the scenes before his eventual departure from the club.

Having shown their ambition to sign Ronaldo, Al Nassr are believed to want to match his marquee arrival with a big coaching name and CBS report that the Portugal international has been looped into talks over potential targets.

On the shortlist, which was not drawn up by Ronaldo exclusively but instead made with input from the striker, are former Real Madrid boss Zidane, who has emerged as a leading candidate, and Jose Mourinho, another former Blancos boss.

Zidane has been out of work since departing the Spanish capital back in 2021 and has long been expected to take either the Paris Saint-Germain or France job.

But neither of those positions have become available thus far, with the former appointing Christophe Galtier to replace Mauricio Pochettino last summer and the latter extending Didier Deschamps’ contract after reaching a second successive World Cup final.

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A verbal offer is said to have been submitted to Zidane, with Ronaldo believed to have been involved in those conversations as well, but there are no guarantees that the Frenchman will take the job.

Mourinho has previously been named as a candidate by Spanish outlet AS, who claimed that two-year contract worth €100m could soon be offered to the current Roma boss.

That contract, which would make Mourinho the highest-paid manager on the planet, would also include the opportunity for the boss to transition into international management with the Saudi Arabian national team.

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