Jorge Jesus under pressure? Ex-Benfica: Al Nassr on the back foot | OneFootball

Today, Jorge Jesus records his first official game in charge of Al Nassr - which recently secured a new reinforcement. The Riyadh emblem faces Al Ittihad, in a match counting for the semi-final of the Saudi Arabian Super Cup. In preview of the match, the Portuguese coach spoke about the club change and showed caution for this Tuesday's confrontation, August 19.

"I couldn't reject the invitation from Al Nassr. One of the things that motivated me was the presence of the new CEO, José Semedo, and, of course, Cristiano Ronaldo. I had left Al Hilal, but I wanted to stay in Saudi Arabia. I swapped my old team for a rival... I had done it in Portugal, between Benfica and Sporting. I was very well treated (at Al Hilal), by everyone, but it's an experience of the past. Now it's another life and the idea is to make Al Nassr win titles again, because it hasn't been able to for years", began Jorge Jesus, recalling the infamous episode when he left Benfica directly for Sporting.

Regarding the confrontation with Al Ittihad, Jorge Jesus attributed the favoritism to the opponent: "We are likely to start at a disadvantage, but we may end up at an advantage. We are preparing to have a team at a competitive level, which I left a good image and that goes to the final, which is the goal".

Already, João Félix also previewed the match counting for the Super Cup, showing his eagerness for his official debut: "We are two games away from winning a title and we are working hard. We know how difficult it will be against Al Ittihad, but we will be ready. We want to win the game and then the competition".

Finally, the Portuguese international stated that he is already acclimated to the Al Nassr locker room, giving a compliment to Jorge Jesus: "Football is a universal language and the players adapt well, especially in a team of stars and with a high-level coach".

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.