Portuguese manager Sérgio Conceição has created a rift at Al-Ittihad Jeddah, with player unrest reported ahead of the club’s AFC Champions League Elite play-off campaign.
Al-Ittihad kick off their Elite League run next Tuesday, when they host UAE side Al-Wahda at Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Sports City Stadium in the round of 16.
Saudi media personality Abdulrahman Al-Humaidi told the “Nadina” programme on MBC1: “On the second day of Eid al-Fitr, the board met to dismiss Conceição as Al-Ittihad manager.”
He added: “The decision was pushed by sporting director Ramón Planes, but club president Fahd Sindi disagreed.”
Sindi favoured retaining the coach and persuaded Planes that a mid-season dismissal would create unnecessary instability.
At the time, reports suggested that Planes himself might be sacked, until the sporting director reversed his stance on dismissing the manager.
Al-Hamidi also detailed dramatic behind-the-scenes events after the team’s 4-3 loss to Neom in Wednesday’s 29th-round Roshen League match.
He added that, after the loss to Neom, Conceição delivered a blistering dressing-room speech that the players rejected, prompting them to appeal to the hierarchy for change.
Since replacing Laurent Blanc last October, Conceição has overseen 33 matches, posting 17 wins, seven draws and nine losses.