Al-Nassr coach Jorge Jesus rubbished the suggestion Cristiano Ronaldo was to blame for his side’s King’s Cup exit at the hands of Al-Ittihad last night.
Ronaldo set up Angelo’s equaliser after his former Real Madrid strike partner Karim Benzema had put the visitors ahead. But Housman Aouar restored Al-Ittihad’s advantage and Al-Nassr were unable to hit back despite playing against 10 men for the bulk of the second half following Ahmed Al Julaydan’s red card.
Ronaldo and Kingsley Coman both wasted excellent chances as Jesus’ side were dumped out at the last 16 stage.
It means Ronaldo’s wait for a major trophy with the Pro League club goes on.
Jesus defends Ronaldo
Asked about the Portugal superstar’s performance after the game, his countryman Jesus was in no mood to apportion blame in his direction.
He said: ”This is our third match against Al-Ittihad. We won two and lost one. The first half was balanced and after the red card we looked for the draw, but we couldn’t find it.
“Our problem today was not Cristiano, but tiredness and exhaustion. We must not forget that we played against a strong and excellent team, champion of the League and the Cup. The defeat had nothing to do with tactical issues, but with a great match between two teams, each of them looking for victory.”
Jesus unhappy with Conceicao questioning
Jesus also shot down questions relating to his personal duel with Al-Ittihad boss Sergio Conceicao.
The pair were once very close after Jesus helped Conceicao secure his first coaching role at Olhanense. But they fell out during a clash between Porto and Benfica in 2021. Conceicao had the last laugh when his Porto side beat Jesus’ Benfica 3-0 in a Portuguese Cup game later that year, prompting his former mentor to be sacked.
Asked about Conceicao having the upper hand against him in the post-match press conference, Jesus snapped: “Now you want us to talk about the Portuguese championship? What questions are these?
“Today we lost the possibility of winning a big competition. The championship is our priority and the King’s Cup was the second goal, but we failed because the opponent was stronger than us.”
Al-Nassr return to action on Saturday when they host Al-Fayha looking to make it seven wins from seven in the Pro League.
