The Al-Nassr management approved the decision to dismiss coach Stefano Pioli from his position, and the decision was officially announced in a statement on Wednesday.
The Italian coach took over as coach of the Saudi club last November, succeeding Portuguese coach Luis Castro, but failed to achieve any titles with the “Knight of Najd.”
Although the coach frequently praised Ronaldo to both the Saudi and Italian press, his relationship with the “Don” appears to have been less than favorable.
New Club Announces: Ronaldo Refused to Join Us at the Club World Cup!
Ronaldo Part of the Reason for Pioli’s Dismissal
According to Saudi media, Cristiano Ronaldo was the one who demanded Stefano Pioli’s dismissal from coaching Al-Nassr after last season’s disappointing season.
The relationship between Ronaldo and Pioli has been strained in recent months, with the coach substituting players against his will more than once. The failure to win the AFC Champions League or secure a spot in next season’s Saudi League was the final straw.
Weeks ago, reports emerged confirming that Ronaldo had stipulated a major administrative and technical change next season in order to renew his contract with Al-Nassr for another year. This has already begun with the decision to dismiss Pioli. Fernando Hierro, the sporting director, is expected to be the next to depart unless something new is found.
Let’s all go… Ronaldo sets four conditions for continuing with Al-Nassr!
Ronaldo bids farewell to Pioli
Despite all the talk, Cristiano Ronaldo was keen to bid farewell to Pioli after Al-Nassr announced his dismissal.
The 40-year-old posted a tweet on his X account, captioning a photo of Pioli with the caption, “Thank you for everything.”
Grazie per tutto! 🙏🏽 https://t.co/lGfKmNNVGc
— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) June 25, 2025
It is not expected that the dispute between Ronaldo and Pioli was personal, but rather a sporting disagreement over ideas, and Ronaldo’s lack of conviction in the Italian coach’s success in providing the desired technical contribution. Therefore, their relationship did not completely collapse, especially since Pioli was keen to deal with the Portuguese legend with extreme diplomacy.
New Al-Nassr Coach After Pioli
Saudi media outlets have confirmed that former AC Milan coach Sergio Conceição is the favorite to coach Al-Nassr as Pioli’s successor.
Al-Nassr also attempted to sign former Italy national team coach Luciano Spalletti, but he rejected the offer, which was said to be worth more than 10 million euros per year.
At the moment, negotiations with Conceição are presumed to be in advanced stages, and the Portuguese coach does not object to the move to coach Al-Alamy next season.
It should be noted that Pioli, after leaving Al-Nassr, will return to the Italian league to coach Fiorentina, with an official announcement expected within the next few hours.
