Laurent Blanc, former Manchester United player and 1998 World Cup winner, has been sacked as head coach of Al Ittihad, after just four games in charge this season.

Laurent Blanc’s dismissal comes just a day after the reigning Saudi champions suffered a 2-0 defeat to Al Nassr, the team that Cristiano Ronaldo plays for. This was Al Ittihad’s third defeat of the 2025/26 season, leading to Blanc’s dismissal. Blanc, who has managed big French clubs such as Bordeaux,

PSG and Lyon, arrived at Al Ittihad in the summer of 2024. In his first season in Saudi Arabia, Blanc led the team to a domestic double, when Al Ittihad won the Saudi Pro League and the Saudi King’s Cup. However, his honeymoon period ended quickly when the team lost 2-1 to Al Nassr in the Saudi Super Cup semi-finals last month. Al Ittihad lost two more games in September, including an opening day defeat in the AFC Champions League against Al Wahda and then a 2-0 loss to Al Nassr last weekend.

A day after Al Nassr beat Al Ittihad 2-0 thanks to goals from Sadio Mane and Cristiano Ronaldo , Al Ittihad decided to part ways with their head coach, officially announcing Blanc’s departure on social media. The club’s statement read: “Al Ittihad announces the termination of the contract with first team head coach Laurent Blanc and his staff.”

According to journalist Matteo Moretto, Al Ittihad’s board are considering replacing Blanc with former Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez.