A mauling by Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr has prompted one of the most successful clubs in the Middle East to pull the trigger on their boss.
Al Nassr ran out 5-1 victors over Al Ain in the Asian Champions League, with Ronaldo among the goalscorers.
The defeat sparked Al Ain into action as former Chelsea striker Hernan Crespo was relieved of his duties after almost a year in charge.
Crespo had overseen a worrying run of form in which Al Ain were winless in their last four and had shipped an alarming 14 goals in that time.
He departs the role with Al Ain sitting 8th out of 14 teams in the UAE Pro League and are 10 points off leaders Shabab Al Ahli.
The Argentinian was appointed in November last year and was in charge for 47 games with a record of 23 wins, six draws and 18 defeats.
Crespo’s crowning moment at the Emirati club was when he guided Al Ain to its second Asian Champions League trophy in May.
A 6-3 aggregate victory over Japanese side Yokohama F. Marinos helped Al Ain land Asian football’s biggest prize for clubs.
It also helped Al Ain seal a spot at the upcoming 32-team Club World Cup in the United States.
However, Crespo will not be the man to lead them after being axed.
The 49-year-old called time on his glittering playing career in November 2012 having enjoyed spells at Inter Milan, Chelsea, Lazio and Parma.
Crespo moved into management in 2014 when he took charge of Parma’s Under-19 side and moved into senior football in July 2015 with Moderna.
He transitioned out of the dugout in 2017 when he became Parma’s vice president but returned to management in January 2019 with Argentinian side Banfield.
Stints at Defensa and Sao Paulo followed before he moved to the Middle East in March 2022 when he joined Qatari side Al Duhail and won the treble of the Qatari Stars League, Qatari Cup and Qatari Stars Cup in his first season.
But now that he’s been axed by Al Ain, Crespo will be on the hunt for his next role.
