King Saud University Stadium Al-Awwal Park: The Beautifully Crafted Home Of Al-Nassr
Some Little Known Portuguese Player That Looks Alright.....He Might Have A Future Some Reckon.....
As we approach the end (we think) of FM24 in anticipation of FM26, Cristiano Ronaldo is entering his final year under contract at Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League.
To end FM24, lets give him the send off he deserves and make a serious challenge on all fronts. In the process, lets also look at some Saudi Pro League objectives as we think about the long term of our Arabian journey.
OBJECTIVES
Win the Saudi Pro League and Custodian Of The Two Holy Mosques Cup
Build the tactic around Cristiano to enable him to score 40 league goals as a send off (ambitious)
Be ruthless in the transfer market to build a European Champions League calibre squad whilst having fun splashing the cash!
Hoover up domestic talent as it comes; attempt to grow the reputation of Saudi Arabia
THE TRANSFER MARKET AND PUTTING TOGETHER THE SQUAD
With an initial transfer kitty of £75 million and a wage budget of just over £12 million per week, there is plenty to spend as you would expect. Excess wage budget has been added to the transfer kitty, reducing the wage bill to a more than adequate £10.7 million per week, freeing up £168 million to spend in the transfer market. The club bank balance currently sits at a health £320 million in cash reserves.
After analysing the depth of the squad, and with saudi pro league rules dictating a maximum of 8 foreign players that can be registered, some tough decisions lay ahead.
Several high profile players are not registered for the saudi pro league and are transfer listed immediately. The notable players that will be leaving the club are:
Angelo
Wesley
Bento
Jhon Duran
Despite best efforts to accomodate him immediately, no place in the squad will be granted to Cristiano Ronaldo Jnr, who will spend the season featuring in the development squad but will be given chances in the domestic cup competitions.
Domestic players Majeed Qasheesh (Al-Khaleej), Waleed Ayyash (Abha), Mohammed Marran (Al-Ettifaq) and Mohammed Al-Shammari (Al-Wehda) are deemed surplus to requirements and shipped out.
TRANSFER INCOMINGS
SERGE GNABRY - BAYERN MUNCHEN - £30 MIL UP FRONT RISING TO £60 MIL
Serge Gnabry will play primarily as a number 10 and look to link up with Cristiano. He was brought in on having a good understanding with Sadio Mane whilst at Bayern, and having the versatility to cover multiple positions with a quality skills set
NICOLO BARELLA - INTERNAZIONALE - £70 MILLION RISING TO £120 MILLION
Having looked at the squad, I wanted to play with two central midfielders and Nicolo Barella combines great talent on the ball with a tireless work ethic. Was bought to partner Marcelo Brozovic in the centre of the pitch and will be given license to join in with attacks. Ive overpaid for him in transfer fee and wages, but this is Saudi, its the name of the game.
FOREIGN PLAYERS REGISTERED FOR 1st TRANSFER WINDOW
TACTICAL APPROACH - FLYING 442 - POTENT ATTACKING POTENTIAL, LEAKY AT THE BACK
The squad seemed really well aligned to play a 442 with a group of hard working players in the spine of the team at centre back and centre midfield, with creativity and flair up top and in the wide areas.
The basic tactic has been a two banks of four in defensive, mixed with winning the ball back in deeper areas and springing counter attacks in possession. The tactical approach has seen up potent going forward and not as leaky as results might appear in pre season as late goals often go in as a result of limited options from the bench as players tire (a key reason why im opting not to counter press).
The standard tactic is the balanced mentality but we can go compact in the cautious block or look to gain more possession and shorter passing in the positive set up
PRE SEASON - SOLID TACTICAL WORK, GOOD FITNESS LEVELS, READY TO GO
A pre-season against opponents using different tactical set ups was trialled; Wolfsberger playing a 352, Celtic a 4231, Dinamo Zagreb and Al-Qadsiah opting for 433 set ups, the later fielding experienced european league campaigners Nahitan Nandez, Nacho and Pierre Emerick Aubameyang.
Results were good, lots of goals were conceded, often from very strong winning positions which will certainly be something we will look to eradicate.
Cristiano Ronaldo helped himself to 4 goals, and was inspired by a string of highly impressive performances from out wide by Otavio.
When the cup draw was made, a first round tie vs Al-Ettifaq had banana skin potential. And so it proved on a highly disappointing night at the Saud. Despite enjoying the better of the game, clinical finishes from Gini Wijnaldum and Moussa Dembele, engineering half a yard in the box and firing low into the bottom left corner, sealed the fate.
At the other end, Marek Rodak pulled off a string of saves, including from a Gnabry penalty that summed up the mood in the stadium. The Kings Cup was the opportunity for game time for Cristiano Jnr, but a highly disappointing early exit leaves an uphill battle
INJURIES BRING OPPORTUNITIES IN THE MOST UNLIKELY OF SOURCES AS THE LEAGUE CAMPAIGN STARTS WELL
Sadio Mane and Cristiano Ronaldo between them have missed five games in the months of August and September. Not that its slowed them down, with Ronaldo bagging 6 goals and Mane 7 in that period.
But out wide, unlikely opportunities opened up to domestic talents Mohammed Salouli and Abdulrahman Ghareeb and they have taken their chances with aplomb. 4 goals and 4 assists between them have led to selection headaches a plenty, in the nicest possible way.
Ghareeb in particular, a revelation in the inside left position
The big game of the month was the home game with Al-Ittihad, which in truth was a drab affair. An early tap in after great work down the right from otavio found Ronaldo for a tap in from penalty spot range on 3 mins. It proved not to be the catalyst we hoped for, as Al-Ittihad grew into the game and were fully rewarded with a curling effort from the edge of the area by Houssem Aouar on 36th minute. The 2nd half was largely uneventful as the game fizzled out.
CHANGES IN THE CAMP
Jhon Duran has left the club before the window on a season long loan to Portuguese club AUS SAD. Angelino makes a permanent move to Man City for a fee of £11.25 million.
In the coaching set up, in answer to the complaints of players who want an improved coaching team, Al-Nassr answers the call of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, who comes in as a striking coach
