Reunion in Saudi Arabia: Conceição and Pereira reunite at Al-Ittihad after Porto fallout
9 October 2025
The Reunion of a Portuguese Duo
The Portuguese coach Sérgio Conceição, newly appointed head coach of Al-Ittihad, and Danilo Pereira, the club's standout defender, prepare for a fresh chapter in the Saudi Pro League.
Al-Ittihad announced on Wednesday that Conceição would lead the team for two and a half years, through 2028, succeeding the recently dismissed Laurent Blanc after a run of unsatisfactory results.
Conceição and Pereira once shared a locker room at Porto, guiding the club from 2017 to 2020, a period marked by steady results and Pereira rising to captain before a 2020 move to Paris Saint-Germain.
From Conflict to Comeback in Saudi Football
The pair began together when Pereira joined Porto's first team in 2015, and Conceição took charge in 2017. They worked side by side for three seasons, until Pereira left Porto first on loan and then on a permanent transfer.
The arc turned dramatic in July 2024, when a tiff erupted in a Portuguese hotel during a training camp, fueled by a late dinner return and a sharp exchange between the captain and the coach.
Newspaper reports claimed Pereira's absence from a friendly was due to personal reasons, while Porto officials insisted there had been no lasting rift; the situation cooled, and Pereira returned to training and leadership duties under careful scrutiny.
Despite the strain, Porto maintained that relations remained workable, and Pereira stayed a key figure, though his long-term future seemed uncertain.
Pereira's path to the continent's top clubs included interest from Arsenal and Manchester United around 2018, a Monaco bid of 30 million euros, and PSG's eventual loan in 2020, followed by a permanent move.
After four seasons with PSG, Pereira moved to Al-Ittihad last year, while Conceição readied for a new challenge, with Milan named as a potential next destination before this reunion.
Now the Portuguese duo reunites in Jeddah, re-linking a known chemistry with the potential to boost Al-Ittihad's ambitions in domestic and continental competitions.
As the club seeks stability after earlier upheavals, the two will need to translate their history into on-field success—a test of character for both player and coach.
Punchlines: When your coach and your captain finally make up, even the trophy organizers breathe a sigh of relief—finally a duo that argues in perfect harmony: slightly chaotic, but totally effective. And if all else fails, you can blame Porto flashbacks for the season’s plot twists.
