New Al Nassr manager Jorge Jesus: Without Cristiano Ronaldo, I would not be here
Jesus has signed a one-year contract with the Saudi Pro League club and will be linking up with veteran attacker Cristiano Ronaldo, who agreed a two-year extension with Nassr in June.
And the 70-year has revealed that his countryman played a pivotal role in him becoming Nassr's new coach. "Without Cristiano Ronaldo, I certainly wouldn't be there," said Jesus.
"The motivation is high. Al Nassr needs to win titles, just like Cristiano Ronaldo, who has always won everything at the clubs he's played for.
"He hasn't won practically anything at this one yet, so I'll see if I can help him. We speak the same language, so it will be easy. I couldn't turn down the challenge Cristiano gave me.
"I love being in Saudi Arabia; it's the country of the future, in football and beyond. We're delighted to return. I've always been very happy. I've always won, and now I'm going to try to do it again."
He becomes the fifth Al Nassr coach since Ronaldo's arrival at the end of 2022 after Frenchman Rudi Garcia, Croatian Dinko Jelicic, countryman Luis Castro and Italy's Stefano Pioli.
Previous coach Pioli's brief spell in charge ended last month with the Italian heading back to Serie A to take over as Fiorentina manager.
Pioli, who was named Serie A coach of the year with AC Milan in 2022, could not guide Ronaldo and Nassr to the first major trophy of the Portuguese striker's spell in the kingdom and his reign lasted less than nine months after replacing Castro.
"Thanks for everything," Ronaldo wrote in a message on social media following the news of Pioli's exit.
The club would finish third in the SPL, 13 points behind champions Al Ittihad and five shy of second-placed Al Hilal, despite Ronaldo again finishing top of the scoring charts with 25 goals.
Al Nassr's AFC Champions League Elite dreams were ended by Kawasaki Frontale at the semi-final stage, with the Japanese side winning 3-2 in Jeddah. Kawasaki would go on to lose against Nassr's SPL rivals Al Ahli in the final.
Jesus, meanwhile, saw his second spell as Al Hilal coach come to an end after their reign as SPL champions was ended by Al Ittihad while they were knocked out of the Asian Champions League in the semi-finals 3-1 by eventual winners Al Ahli.
They did triumph in the Saudi Super Cup against Al Nassr, though, despite Ronaldo putting his team into an early lead as Hilal roared back with goals from Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Malcom either side of an Aleksandar Mitrovic double to seal a 4-1 battering.
The 2023-24 season had been a record-breaking one for Jesus and Hilal as they secured a fourth SLP title in five years, as well as embarking on a remarkable run of 34 consecutive victories across all competitions.
The streak was ended by UAE side Al Ain in the Asian Champions League last four with the Garden City club going on to win the competition.
Hilal also won the King's Cup that season, again beating Nassr in the final via a penalty shoot-out, a loss that left Ronaldo in tears after the match.
But Jesus could not repeat that success the following campaign and left Hilal by mutual consent, meaning he missed out on leading the team at the Fifa Club World Cup.
The veteran coach had been linked with the Brazil job before the Selecao appointed Carlo Ancelotti, but instead returns to Saudi Arabia with Al Nassr.
As well as Ronaldo, Jesus will have at his disposal the likes of former Manchester City defender Aymeric Laporte, ex-Porto attacking midfielder Otavio and forward Sadio Mane, who won the Fifa Club World Cup and Uefa Champions League with Liverpool.
He has just lost the services of Colombian striker Jhon Duran who has moved to Turkish side Fenerbahce on a one-year loan.
Duran scored 12 goals in 18 games after moving from English side Aston Villa in February in a deal worth up to $80 million.
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It's been incredibly helpful to me,' said Keys of her decision to speak to a therapist. 'I've tried sports psychologists in the past, and I think for me just everything being so focused on just the sport and just tennis was not as helpful as I needed it to be. 'Really going to someone and looking at my overall life and how that was influencing how I felt on the court probably made the biggest difference for me. 'I feel like as tennis players, from a pretty young age, it just happens where our identity becomes very wrapped up in being a tennis player. 'That's great, but when you have the tough kind of weeks, months, years on tour, that can really take a toll on how you think about yourself as a person. 'So being able to dive into that and figure out how to separate the two and know that you're not just a tennis player, you're a full person that has all of these other really great attributes and other interests and just different things in your life. 'That was really a really important piece for me, and I think that kind of made the tennis a little bit easier.' Keys clinched a maiden Grand Slam title in January this year at the Australian Open and has credited the work she has done with her psychologist for her breakthrough just a couple of weeks shy of her 30th birthday. Rublev, who has openly discussed his battle with depression, was asked to give advice to his peers on tour who may be struggling with mental health issues. At Wimbledon, Alexander Zverev spoke about feeling 'empty' and 'lonely' away from the court and how he is generally 'lacking joy'. Casper Ruud told reporters in Madrid the tennis tour felt like a 'rat race' and that he was 'running in a hamster wheel that never got anywhere'. Rublev's advice for his fellow players is to look inward. 'To be honest, it's nothing to do with tennis. It's just you can find excuses, how exhausted or mentally tired from playing non-stop, non-stop, but it's nothing to do with tennis,' said the Russian world No 10. 'In the end, tennis is just the trigger point. It's something inside of you that you need to face. It happens to everyone, because Sascha [Zverev], he really loves tennis, and Casper, and many players, they do love tennis. The ones who don't love, who don't like tennis, they are more relaxed. 'They don't really care because maybe they have different priorities, but the ones who love tennis, the tennis triggers you. 'You tell them to, tell Sascha or someone to take a break. It will get tough for him to take a break. He would love to play. For sure, Casper, maybe, for him it's not also easy. 'So, yeah, like I said, it's nothing to do with tennis. Tennis is just the trigger moment.' Karen Khachanov echoed those sentiments and said he chose to take three weeks off post-US Open last year because he 'wasn't in the best state of mind' during the summer. 'At the end of the day it's not only about having this time off, it's about really being fair, honest and satisfied with yourself. So what is really bothering you, why you are not enjoying it?' asked Khachanov. Anisimova is a prime example of how taking time off to address burnout and mental health concerns can really be beneficial for one's career in the future. The American spent eight months away from the sport before returning in 2024 and has now reached a maiden Grand Slam final at Wimbledon. Jabeur is just the latest in a string of players speaking up and choosing to put themselves first. Here's hoping others will take notice and opt to prioritise their mental well-being, because the way I see it, burnout may seem truly inevitable but it can also be avoidable with the right approach.
