There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Al-Nassr, and 5 appearances in 25 say he has earned the hearing.
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Al-Nassr have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Al-Nassr has been clear about where Sultan Al-Ghannam stands, which is more than many ever get.
“I did not go to Esteghlal Khuzestan to sit and watch. I want to come back to Al-Nassr and fight for my place.” 4 appearances in 21 matches say the rest.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Al-Nassr know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Al-Nassr, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Al-Nassr have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Al-Nassr have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
An error at the back is a moment; an error in goal is a goal. Bento knows it, the crowd knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
“I did not go to Esteghlal Khuzestan to sit and watch. I want to come back to Al-Nassr and fight for my place.” 2 appearances in 13 matches say the rest.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Al-Nassr can pretend not to have heard.
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Al-Nassr know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
He is the name in every column and on every phone-in, which is a heavy thing to carry at any age. Some footballers thrive on it; others are quietly finished by it.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
The crowd waited for a goal that never came. Al-Shabab defended in numbers and left with what they came for, and the two sides could be playing still without troubling a scorer.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Al-Nassr, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Shifted about, taken off before the hour, asked to do somebody else's running — Abdulelah Al-Amri has had enough of being useful and would like to be picked. Al-Nassr know, and have known for weeks.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Al-Nassr can pretend not to have heard.
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
He is the name in every column and on every phone-in, which is a heavy thing to carry at any age. Some footballers thrive on it; others are quietly finished by it.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Al-Nassr know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
3 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Al-Nassr, and 0 appearances in 5 say he has earned the hearing.
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Al-Nassr have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Al-Nassr can pretend not to have heard.
An error at the back is a moment; an error in goal is a goal. Bento knows it, the crowd knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Al-Nassr have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Al-Nassr have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Al-Nassr know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
The deal that would have taken Abdulelah Al-Amri to Najran has collapsed at the last stage, and he reports back to Al-Nassr with a summer to forget and a season still to play. Nobody is saying which side walked away.
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Al-Nassr can pretend not to have heard.
Asked to play a role that is not his, or taken off before the hour once too often — Abdullah Al-Khaibari has let it be known that he does not like the way Al-Nassr are using him. Managers hear this long before the press does.
Public backing, and the sort that costs a manager something if it turns out to be wrong. João Félix has been told in front of everybody that the shirt is his.
In brief
The terracesThe press have found their man in Sadio Mané