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Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr boss Jorge Jesus has claimed the differences he has seen between his side and arch rivals Al-Hilal in terms of financial supremacy. The Portuguese coach took over the duties of the Knights of Najd last summer after a stint in charge of Al-Hilal.
Jorge Jesus makes big claim on Al-Hilal's financial power
Appearing at a press conference after his side's 2-0 win over Al-Fateh in Cristiano Ronaldo's first game after his strike, the experienced coach expressed is thoughts on his club's finances. he disclosed that having previously worked with Al-Hilal, he is aware of the financial power they have, and that it is more than what is presently at his disposal.
"I've already been at Al Hilal. I've been on the other side, so I know what that's like. I've already benefited from it. They have more economic power. When I was there, I benefited as a coach. It's normal. Al-Nassr, with different resources, has to compete for the top spots. We have to continue to be strong. That's why I was hired, to reduce the gap between Al Hilal and Al-Nassr, in terms of titles and points.
And that's what we're doing. We have a lot of confidence in Al-Nassr's structure, a structure that, little by little, is increasingly managing to balance the group. But not only the group of players who play, but also a group off the field, a team that is aware of the difficulties, a team that knows it will be fighting against opponents with greater economic power, not sporting power
We are in the championship fight, we are one point behind the leaders, something Al-Nassr hasn't been able to do. In recent years, Al-Nassr has finished 16 or 14 points behind the lead. This year we don't want that to happen, I don't know what will happen. We are confident that we can compete for the top spots until the end", he said (via ESPN).
Jorge Jesus's stint at Al-Hilal
At Al-Hilal, Jorge Jesus won a number of titles before he was fired after losing to Al-Ahli in the AFC Champions League semi-final last season. The 70-year-old tactician quickly joined Al-Nassr in the summer. He created an impact with his tactics, as his side won straight 10 matches to start the league season before a slump at the start of 2026.
Cristiano Ronaldo's strike this month was in part a protest against the impartiality in spending power between Al-Hilal and his side, both majorly owned by the Saudi Pro League Investment Fund (PIF). Both teams are closely fighting for the league title this season, but it was Al-Hilal that made big signings in the January transfer window.
After news that Al-Hilal were in talks to sign Karim Benzema, Cristiano Ronaldo chose to down tools and made himself unavailable for matches against Al-Riyadh and Al-Ittihad. The 41-year-old's side remain one point behind rivals in the points table and will aim to beat them to the title this season.
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