'Many stars are dissatisfied in Saudi Arabia' admits Laporte

Suraj Radia

• 20 Jan 2024 12:39 GMT
• 3 min read

More stars could emulate Jordan Henderson in making a quick departure from Saudi Arabia, with Al Nassr’s Aymeric Laporte admitting that there are many players who are ‘dissatisfied’ with life in the Gulf nation.

Laporte was one of many global superstars who made the lucrative move to the Saudi Pro League last summer but some have already proven to have regrets over their decision, such as Henderson, who terminated his contract at Al-Ettifaq make the move back to Europe with Ajax this week.

The likes of Karim Benzema and Roberto Firmino have also been rumoured to be unsettled in Saudi Arabia and Laporte told Spanish outlet AS that the country ‘hadn’t made it easy’ on players to settle.

“It's a big change compared to Europe, but in the end it's all adaptation. They haven't made it easy for us,” Laporte said. “In fact, there are many players who are dissatisfied.”

When asked whether he had considered leaving the country, Laporte said “No, let's see. At the moment, I haven't thought about it, but if I'm disappointed in such a short time, you wonder what to do. That moment has not yet arrived, but in the future it could be if this dynamic continues.

“To be honest, many of us have also come here not only for football. Many of us are happy with that, but I am also looking for something beyond that is not the economic part and such.”

Laporte responds to quotes on social media

Laporte explained that he felt that the country ‘takes everything lightly’ and that players are ‘in negotiations’ to try and make improvements to help players adapt to life in the country.

“Life for them... they take everything lightly,” Laporte said. “The ultimatum you can give them doesn't matter to them. I mean, they're really going about their business.

“You negotiate something and then they don't accept it after you have signed it. They fight you.”

He added: “But hey; We are working on it every day, negotiating so to speak, and seeing if it improves a little because this is something new for them too, having European players who already have a long career. Maybe they are not used to this and have to adapt to a little more seriousness.”

Following the publication of the interview, Laporte was quick to seemingly distance himself from the quotes, posting an emoji of a cross on social media in response to the report and suggest his words may have been misinterpreted.