Al-Nassr coach Rudi Garcia has identified three problems that must be resolved in order to successfully integrate Cristiano Ronaldo into the team.
Despite the Portuguese superstar’s recent move to the Saudi Arabian club, things have not gone entirely as planned.
After a goalless debut, Ronaldo missed a crucial chance in the match against Al-Ittihad, which resulted in a 3-1 defeat for Al-Nassr and elimination from the Saudi Super Cup.
Garcia did not shy away from criticizing his new talisman for the missed opportunity against Al-Ittihad which according to him was the turning point of the game. He said:
“One of the things that changed the course of the match was Cristiano’s missed opportunity in the first half.”
He also noted that the team should not always rely on Ronaldo and that the players should make the right decisions on the pitch.
“It is very important that the players play normally and don’t always try to give Cristiano the ball.”, he lamented.
Additionally, Garcia highlighted that the positioning of Ronaldo and another key player, Anderson Talisca, needs to be improved.
“I think sometimes we had good crossing positions, but there were not enough people in the box, sometimes not Ronaldo or Talisca. We have to work on it, have one of them in the area and maybe the other will play outside the area.”
Yet to score for Al-Nassr since signing a lucrative two-and-a-half-year deal with the Saudi Arabian club, worth £173million per year, Ronaldo’s move from Manchester United to the Middle East isn’t going as planned so far.