Roberto Mancini has left his position as Saudi Arabia head coach after 14 months in charge.
The 59-year-old was appointed as the nation’s head coach on a four-year contract in August 2023 following his resignation as manager of the Italian national team.
A statement from the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) on Thursday confirmed that a “joint agreement” had been reached with Mancini to see him depart, while it was also stated that the new head coach “will be announced in the next few days after the finalisation of the contract procedures”.
— مجلس إدارة الاتحاد السعودي لكرة القدم ومدرب المنتخب الوطني “روبرتو مانشيني”، يتوصلون اليوم لاتفاق مشترك يتضمن انتهاء العلاقة التعاقدية 📝⬇ pic.twitter.com/tVfVCGpvVi
— المنتخب السعودي (@SaudiNT) October 24, 2024
Saudi Arabia have won just one of their last five matches and are currently third in Group C of the third round of Asia’s qualification process for the 2026 World Cup.
The top two sides from the six-team group will automatically qualify for the finals, which will be played across the U.S., Mexico and Canada, while the third and fourth-placed teams will advance through to the next round of qualification.
The former Manchester City and Inter Milan boss guided Italy to victory at 2020 European Championship but failed to lead them to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Saudi Arabia will host the World Cup for the first time in 2034, with the nation’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) also investing heavily in club football.
PIF funded a takeover of Premier League club Newcastle United in 2021 and has subsequently invested in domestic Saudi Arabian clubs, including Al Nassr, Al Hilal and Al Ittihad.
Players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Neymar, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino are among those who are playing their club football in Saudi Arabia.
Mancini previously voiced his concerns on the impact of the Saudi Pro League transfer strategy on homegrown players.
“I’ve said this many times,” Mancini told a press conference. “This is the only problem that we have, because three years ago all the Saudi players played every game.
“Today? 50, 60 per cent don’t play in the game.”
(Masashi Hara/Getty Images)
Read the full article here