What’s Happening with Simone Inzaghi? Al-Hilal Fans Furious Despite Top Spot: Juventus Closer

Al Hilal’s loss to the Qatari team Al-Shamal in the AFC Champions League Elite has reignited criticism of Simone Inzaghi, who is deeply unpopular with the Riyadh club’s fans. Last season’s photo-finish loss of the league title to Al-Nassr still stings, and Al-Hilal supporters have not forgiven the former Inter coach, who faces harsh criticism with every misstep the team makes. In this instance, his decision not to bring the team’s best players (Sommerville, Martinelli, and Ruben Neves) to Qatar has come under fire.

Al-Hilal’s lead in the Saudi League isn’t enough: the defeat in the Champions League has sparked protests from fans and insiders, including commentator Abdullah Falatah: “After what I saw at Al-Hilal, I’ve retracted my statement that money is everything. Sometimes you have the money, but then the coach comes along and throws it all away. Inzaghi underestimated Al-Shamal, fielded reserve players, and led us to defeat.”

Simone Inzaghi, who earns a net salary of 25 million euros per season in Saudi Arabia, has been criticized by fans on social media, who have taken issue with his cautious approach and have repeatedly trended the hashtag #Inzaghiout. After the match, he had this to say: “This result is not satisfactory for us. We made a lot of mistakes, but we’ll analyze them and try to make up for them in the next game.”

The former Inter and Lazio coach has been linked in recent weeks to Juventus, in light of Luciano Spalletti’s possible dismissal. Inzaghi is considered by Juventus management to be one of the ideal coaches on whom to build a new era: his contract expires in 2027, and Carnevali could very well turn to him to revitalize the Old Lady’s project.