Former Tottenham and Nottingham Forest boss signs two-year deal to coach Al-Nassr
-Arlington: Ange Postecoglou will return to Asian football for her next campaign, signing a two-year deal with leading Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr, captained by Cristiano Ronaldo.
Postecoglou was out of a job after being sacked as Nottingham Forest manager in October following a disastrous eight-game, 39-day tenure at the Premier League club; this was the longest period of inactivity in his coaching career since his dismissal as Australian youth coach.
Postecoglou still has aspirations of winning trophies at the highest level and so his move away from Europe would be a big surprise. But coaching Al-Nassr is one of the most high-profile jobs in the sport due to the club’s massive spending power and the presence of Portuguese superstar Ronaldo, 41, who has been playing for the Riyadh team since the end of the last World Cup in 2022.
“A new chapter. Mr. Ange Postecoglou has been appointed as the head coach of the Al-Nassr A team. The contract spans two seasons,” the club said in a statement.
“We wish him and his team success on their journey,” he said.
The following quote from Postecoglou’s social media post announcing his appointment is famous: “All my previous clubs had the same ending. With me and a cup.”
The biggest club in one of football’s emerging epicenters, Al-Nassr is majority-owned by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia and was crowned champions of the Saudi Pro League last season.
Postecoglou, 60, replaced Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus on the bench and inherited a squad that also included Joao Felix, Sadio Mane, Kingsley Coman and a host of Saudi internationals.
He has been working as a pundit for British broadcaster ITV during the World Cup and has been a technical advisor to UEFA since leaving Forest.
Postecoglou previously managed Tottenham Hotspur, whom he guided to Europa League victory in 2025, but was sacked two weeks later as the team finished 17th in the Premier League.
He has been linked with the job in Scotland after Steve Clarke resigned following the World Cup exit, and has also been linked with a move to Kazakhstan, where Australian Scott Munn, who served as Tottenham’s chief football officer during his tenure in North London, is now the national federation’s general secretary. Media reports have stated that wage demands are too high for the Central Asian side.
It remains to be seen how Postecoglou’s distinctive style of attacking football, known as “Angeball”, will work in the relentless heat of Saudi Arabia.
