Cristiano Ronaldo: Coy Al Nassr coach sends Man Utd reminder and suggests Ten Hag contrast by citing Francesco Totti

Rudi Garcia, the head coach of Al Nassr, has explained how he might be able to get the best out of Cristiano Ronaldo, whom he “would be delighted” to manage despite remaining coy on the speculation.

Al Nassr have made an offer to Ronaldo after his recent departure from Manchester United by mutual consent. The Saudi Arabian side want him to continue his career outside Europe, even if his preference would be to remain in his own continent.

The offer on the table from Al Nassr is extremely lucrative, so will be worth considering. With Portugal out of the World Cup, Ronaldo will soon have to come to a decision about his future at club level.

Now, Al Nassr head coach Rudi Garcia has opened up on his club’s pursuit of one of the sport’s greatest ever athletes.

Garcia told AS: “I can’t say anything about Cristiano because otherwise it would immediately appear in the headlines: ‘Garcia: about Ronaldo’.

“What I see is that it has been a soap opera and it has been a very important promotion for Al Nassr.”

However, the former Roma, Marseille and Lyon manager was pressed further on the topic of Ronaldo, who endured a power struggle with Erik ten Hag at Manchester United.

In his response, after reiterating that he could already have had the chance to coach Ronaldo at Manchester United himself, Garcia indicated he could potentially handle the ex-Juventus and Real Madrid superstar better.

Rudi Garcia ‘would be delighted’ to coach Cristiano Ronaldo

The Frenchman explained: “I think that any coach would be delighted to train a great star like Cristiano and already in November 2021 I was very close to going to United.

“They chose Ralf Rangnick, but I met twice with John Murtough and Darren Fletcher.

“I came very close to coaching this club and was very motivated to go, who wouldn’t be motivated to coach United? Any coach. United’s simple interest has allowed me to be sure of my ambitions in the future.

“I have always thought that the great players are the easiest to manage because they are very intelligent, I verified this with Francesco Totti at Roma.”

Garcia got 19 goals and assists apiece out of Totti from 69 games together at Roma. The Italian legend then endured a much more miserable time individually under Garcia’s successor, current Napoli boss Luciano Spalletti.

Hence, Garcia would be hoping he could also give Ronaldo some more enjoyment in the twilight of his career after a difficult 2022 on and off the pitch.

Beyond their potential link-up, the 58-year-old has suggested he could have a future in the Premier League himself despite his missed opportunity with Man Utd.

Garcia concluded: “Of course, without disrespecting Al Nassr, one day I think I will train in Spain, for sure. I would also like to train in the Premier League.”

For now, Garcia’s commitments are in Saudi Arabia. It should soon become clear as to whether he will be working with Ronaldo next or not.

READ MORE: Erik ten Hag in scathing attack on Cristiano Ronaldo as real reasons behind Man Utd exit come to light