“Now you see the difference between Luis Castro and Piolo” - Al-Nassr fans make confident claim as new manager enjoys winning start to life in Saudi
Fans lavished praise on Al-Nassr's new manager Stefano Pioli while criticizing Luis Castro after the Knights of Najd defeated Al-Ettifaq 3-0 at Abdullah Al Dabil Stadium on Friday (September 20).
Cristiano Ronaldo opened the scoring from the penalty spot (33') after Abdullah Madu's foul on Sultan Al-Ghannam. In the second half, Salem Al-Najdi doubled the visitors' lead (56') with a left-footed effort from a Sadio Mane assist. Finally, Talisca made it 3-0 in the 70th minute with the Senegalese frontman providing the assist for the second time.
It was also the first Al-Nassr match under new boss Stefano Pioli. The club appointed the Italian tactician after sacking Luis Castro. The decision to fire Castro came after the club had a poor start to the season and underperformed in the pre-season games.
Fans took to X after Al-Nassr's victory over Al-Ettifaq to rave about the near-perfect debut of Stefano Pioli.
"Here you go, now you see the difference between Luis Castro and Pioli," noted a fan.
"The whole team on fire that's what happened when you play under a real manager," lauded another.
One fan raved about the solid defensive performance of the team - one of the weakest links during Castro's tenure. They tweeted:
"Excellent Pioli read the game perfectly and a solid defense was seen that is what we need you see good things."
"What a game by Pioli," agreed another fan.
"New coach revived the players," noted another netizen.
"PIOLI IS ON FIRE," wrote one fan on X.
Cristiano Ronaldo sent a heartwarming message to Luis Castro after he left Al-Nassr
Cristiano Ronaldo posted a heartwarming message for Luis Castro after the Portuguese left the Knights of Najd. Castro became the third manager to depart since Ronaldo's arrival in January 2023.
Former AS Roma manager Rudi Garcia was sacked in April 2023. He was replaced by Dinko Jelicic, who was in charge for just 78 days before being substituted by Castro.
Posting a photo alogside Castro on his Instagram story, Ronaldo wrote:
"Thank you for everything."
Al-Nassr were seventh in the Saudi Pro League table with just five points in three games when Castro was sacked. Prior to the league season, the Knights of Najd were demolished by rivals Al-Hilal in the Saudi Super Cup final. Despite a first-half goal by Cristiano Ronaldo (44'), Luis Castro's side conceded four in 17 minutes in the second half (55', 63', 69', and 72') to lose the game 4-1.
Al-Nassr won the 2023 Arab Champions Cup under Castro after defeating Al-Hilal in the final. However, Castro couldn't replicate the success in the 2023-24 Saudi Pro League season, finishing 14 points behind champions Al-Hilal.