Ange Postecoglou has accepted responsibility after Al-Nassr suffered a heavy defeat in the AFC Champions League Elite.
The Saudi Pro League champions lost 4–0 to United Arab Emirates club Al-Ain in their opening match.
The result left Al-Nassr at the bottom of the 16-team league standings.
Al-Ain punish Al-Nassr after the break
Al-Ain took the lead in the 25th minute through Houssine Rahimi.
Al-Nassr struggled to respond before the break.
The home side then took control in the second half and added three more goals.
The defeat marked a disappointing start to Al-Nassr’s continental campaign.
The club had entered the competition after winning the Saudi Pro League title.
However, Cristiano Ronaldo and his teammates could not prevent a one-sided result.
Postecoglou takes responsibility
Speaking after the match, Postecoglou accepted responsibility for the performance.
The Al-Nassr coach insisted that his players had given everything despite the result.
His comments came after the team failed to produce the performance expected from the Saudi champions.
Postecoglou also defended his players following the heavy loss.
He said the responsibility for the outcome rested with him rather than the squad.
Ronaldo’s team faces early pressure
The defeat puts Al-Nassr under pressure at the start of the Champions League Elite campaign.
The club will now need to recover in its remaining league-phase matches.
Ronaldo remains one of the team’s main attacking figures.
However, Al-Nassr failed to find the net against Al-Ain.
The result also gave the Emirati club an important opening victory in the competition.
Al-Nassr will now turn its attention to its next fixtures as it seeks to revive its continental campaign.
Source: CitiSports
