Pioli upset with latest Al-Nassr dropped points but has sympathy for ‘fatigued’ players

Al-Nassr boss Stefano Pioli  felt sympathy for his players following their 2-2 draw with Al Shabab.

It was more dropped points for Cristiano Ronaldo and Co as well as another red card, with their hopes of winning the Saudi Pro League all but over.

Despite coming from a goal down, with Ronaldo on the scoresheet, the home side could not hold on in Riyadh.

As a result, they find themselves 10 points behind leaders Al-Ittihad.

And Pioli puts the result down to fatigue and lack of sharpness due to fixture congestion.

Speaking after the game, he said: “I am sad about the result of the match, and I promise the audience that I will present a better level in the next match.

“I am sad because our players worked hard on the field, and we could have achieved a better result.

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“We have been going through a lot of pressure lately, so we have to prepare the players mentally.

“In the last matches, Al Nassr did not score before the opponent, and this made us run after the goal in order to score the equaliser and win.

“The players are working hard on the field and we waste many opportunities, but we are working on correcting that.

“We looked for solutions on the bench, and those we included provided what was required.

“We are going through difficult circumstances due to the number of matches and the fatigue, and we are focusing on the next important match in the AFC Champions League.”

With 20 minutes still to go, Pioli took Ronaldo off despite his team chasing a goal.

Jhon Duran was the man to replace him, and the head coach stuck by his decision to make the change.

He added: “We thought about exhaustion and fatigue, Duran would be more physically fit to score goals.”