Former Azzurri head coach Roberto Mancini is the new coach of the Saudi Arabia national soccer team. The possibility of Mancini going to lead the Saudi guys' national soccer team had been talked about for days after his unexpected resignation, which he attributed to disagreements with the President of the Italian Football Federation, Gabriele Gravina. Now the confirmation has come. Mancini was officially presented in Riyad, the Saudi capital, on Monday afternoon. In a video presentation shared by the Saudi national team on social media, Mancini says he has made "history in Europe", and that "now it's time to make history with the Saudis". Mancini had been the coach of the Italian national team since May 14, 2018. He had won the European Championship in 2021, but failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup the following year. According to the paper La Gazzetta dello Sport, Mancini signed a contract that will commit him until 2027, for a salary of about 25 million euros a year. In Italy, he used to earn 4 million euros.
|