Al-Nassr star Cristiano Ronaldo is supposedly making a concerted effort to bring Manchester City midfielder Mateo Kovacic to the club.
The pair once shared a dressing room at Real Madrid, an association which came to an end in 2018 when Ronaldo joined Juventus and Kovacic signed for Chelsea on an initial loan deal.
The Croatia international made his move to the Blues permanent in the summer of 2019 and became a key man for Thomas Tuchel, winning the Champions League and Club World Cup at Stamford Bridge.
Kovacic subsequently swapped Chelsea blue for sky blue, joining Man City in a €29.1m (£24.5m) deal last summer and making 46 appearances in his debut season as the Citizens won their fourth straight Premier League title.
The 30-year-old has also made a bright start to the 2024-25 campaign, benefitting from Rodri's fitness setback to start each of his side's first three games of the new top-flight campaign, scoring once against former side Chelsea in a 2-0 win.
© Imago
Al-Nassr to lure Kovacic with £759,000-a-week wages?
Kovacic still has three years left to run on his contract with the Premier League champions, but it remains to be seen how Rodri's imminent return will impact his game time over the next few months.
Hoping to take advantage of the uncertainty, CBS Sports claims that Al-Nassr are weighing up an approach for Kovacic in the January transfer window, and Ronaldo has been the driving force behind the Saudi side's pursuit.
The report adds that Al-Nassr are hopeful of prising Kovacic away from the Etihad with an astronomical wage offer of $1m (£759,131) per week and around $65m (£49.3m) per year, having initially hoped to bring him to the Middle East on deadline day.
Al-Nassr would have had to offload one of their current international players - most likely Sadio Mane - to sign Kovacic on Monday, though, and they were unable to do so, meaning that their plans had to be put on ice.
As well as tabling a mammoth contract offer to Kovacic, it is claimed that Al-Nassr were also willing to pay City one of the highest transfer fees ever paid by a Saudi club, as Ronaldo believes that the midfielder could be "transformative" for the club.
© Imago
Al-Nassr will look to offload one or both of Mane and Anderson Talisca in January to free up space for Kovacic, who is also facing added competition from the returning Ilkay Gundogan in the City midfield.
The Saudi club are also said to be targeting Adrien Rabiot, who is a free agent after ending his spell at Juventus, but Kovacic is seen as more of a priority at this moment in time.
Could Kovacic trigger Man City Saudi exodus?
The former Chelsea and Real Madrid lynchpin is one of a handful of Man City players targeted by the Saudi Pro League, a list that also includes Kevin De Bruyne and Ederson.
There has seemingly been no progress in talks over a new deal for 33-year-old De Bruyne, who can walk away as a free agent next year, and he recently offered an update on his future at the Etihad.
Man City sit top of the Premier League table and return to action after the international break at home to Brentford on September 14.
Ben Knapton
