Recently, Al Nassr manager Jorge Jesus gave an interview to camel.live, discussing his form and goals since taking charge of Al Nassr, while also praising João Félix and stating that Félix is far from reaching his full potential.
You have a strong personality as a coach, and Cristiano does too. Could there be conflicts between these two personalities?
Conflicts are possible, and that’s because of the head coach or the coaching staff. It’s normal; sometimes, there are personality clashes with Cristiano or other players. But as long as both sides understand that the team’s interests come first, these things will pass quickly. I don’t think there will be any problems.
Have you come to terms with not becoming the Brazil national team coach?
What can I do? But I don’t want to talk about it anymore. At the time, I was fully committed to my role at Al Hilal. All I could think about was reaching the AFC Champions League final, winning it, and playing in the Club World Cup. They came to Lisbon twice to try to take me, but I refused both times—once in January and once in March. But that’s in the past; now I’m at Al Nassr.
There have been many rumors these days that you want to bring Bruno Fernandes here. Is that true?
It’s not me—he’s the one who wanted to.
So it won’t happen?
No, Bruno has decided to stay at Manchester United.
But did you try to convince him?
No. We talked about it last year when we were discussing Al Hilal. At the time, I planned to continue coaching Al Hilal. After that, there was a strange and complicated story related to the Brazil national team. I did send him an invitation last year. This year, I know he’s decided to stay under Amorim. That’s fine; the league he’s in now is called the best in the world by everyone, though I don’t think so, but it doesn’t matter anymore.
Then which league do you think is the best?
Without a doubt, La Liga (the Spanish league).
Will there be any more influential signings in this transfer window? For example, I’ve seen that Núñez might go to your former team, and you know him well.
Yes, he’s an option, but in my opinion, his best position is as a center forward. And we have Cristiano; I don’t think they’d work well together, they’re not a good fit. It’s a bit of a shame that he’s going to our rival team because he’s a great player. We’re still looking for candidates. Durán has gone to Fenerbahçe, and Laporte is leaving, so we need foreign players to join. I like Otávio a lot; he’s a good player, but not the type I need. What I want is a winger, someone who can play wide on the flanks. Otávio isn’t a winger, so I have to choose between him and another foreign player who can play wide. We’re still looking for such a player; I don’t know if we’ll find one, but we’re trying.
Will there be more signings from the Portuguese league?
No, the Portuguese league starts tomorrow.
Are you satisfied with today’s match performance? Does Al Nassr now feel more like your team?
Yes. It was an interesting and competitive game. Rio Ave were physically better than us because they’ve had more preparation time and the Primeira Liga is starting soon. But our team performed well, played freely, and executed good positional attacks. We’re still finding our footballing identity—both in defense and attack. This team will also add some Saudi players, and more. I think this is the biggest challenge of my coaching career.
Why do you say that?
Because I know the level of Saudi teams, especially the one I coached before; we spent two years building a great team. So moving to Al Nassr was a very conscious decision. It was Semedo and Cristiano who invited me, and I was drawn to the project.
What demands did they make of you?
From the moment I joined Al Nassr, I knew this was a club built to compete for titles. It has barely won any silverware in recent years, which is why I say it’s a huge challenge. The top teams in the Saudi Pro League have many high-level foreign players, and we’re now trying to find our place among them.
How has it been working with the team these days, especially with Cristiano Ronaldo? Has he surprised you?
He’s a phenomenon. As you saw, this stadium was full today because of him. If he weren’t here, there would be no one. It’s the same abroad. His influence is incredible; I never realized before how much he impacts young people. And his performance on the pitch is exceptional. He doesn’t need many chances to score. Just three touches near the box, and he’ll score two. Today he scored three. As captain, he even gave up a penalty to Mané. The second time, he took it himself, maybe to complete his hat-trick. We’ll work step by step to build a responsible, substantial team that can compete for the Saudi Pro League title. Because this is a league with many excellent players.
Is the partnership between Félix and Cristiano getting better?
Yes. Even though they knew each other before, they’re developing more rapport now and cooperating better on the pitch. Félix performed much better today than in previous games, in terms of physical condition, positioning, and technique. We’re all finding our roles, with the goal of building a strong team.
How did you convince him to come to Al Nassr?
As I said before, I didn’t poach him from anyone. He wasn’t a Benfica player; he was at Chelsea. He was on the transfer market, and could have gone to Al Nassr or other teams, depending on the offers. I believe in his style of play; his characteristics fit my understanding of attacking football. I wanted to bring him to Al Hilal last year, but he chose Chelsea. I invited him again this year, almost as soon as I signed or decided to coach Al Nassr, and it took over a month to get it done. I’m glad he made the right decision. Because in Saudi Arabia, you either play football or you don’t. What do I mean? There are no other options. There’s no alcohol (even though he doesn’t drink), no nightlife (though he doesn’t go out), no other entertainment. When he came to Saudi Arabia, he had only one choice: play football, rest, spend time with friends and family—that’s it.
People once said Félix could become one of the best players in the world. Do you think he still has a chance to achieve that under your coaching?
I’m getting to know him now; we’ve never worked together before. Our impressions of players often come from watching them play, but when you actually start working with them, your perception changes—maybe for the better, maybe for the worse. So far, I’m very excited about how he handles the ball, thinks through situations, and makes decisions. But I believe he’s still far below the potential I think he can reach.
Could both of them benefit from this at the national team level?
There’s no doubt about that. Both of them are called up every time the national team is selected. If they play together regularly at the club, it will definitely make it easier for the national team coach to arrange tactics.
