Former Oxford United boss Des Buckingham has remarked at the “quality” he’s ready to face in his new Saudi Pro League gig.
The Oxford-born head coach has recently been appointed Al Kholood’s head coach, the first Saudi club 100 per cent owned by foreign investors, The Harburg Group, fronted by American businessman Ben Harburg.
Buckingham replaces outgoing boss Noureddine Zekri, with Cosmin Contra having spent 20 days as an interim boss in between.
Buckingham compares Saudi Pro League offering to the Premier League
The new boss is excited for the challenge ahead, coming up against coaches like Simone Inzaghi, and players like Cristiano Ronaldo – who Buckingham is actually two days younger than.
The 40-year-old won’t have such resources at his disposal just yet, however, with the most notable player in his ranks to English audiences being midfielder John Buckley, who made 147 appearances for Blackburn Rovers before his transfer to Saudi this year.
“I look at the managers that are in the league this year. We’ve got Inzaghi, Laurent Blanc, Jorge Jesus,” Buckingham told the BBC’s The Dub podcast. “Then you look at some of the players we know, the obvious one is Ronaldo, but you have Mane, Benzema. You’ve got Nunez, Coman, Neves. So in terms of the quality that it attracts and will continue to attract, it’s an exciting place to be right now.
“I think there’s teams here now that have got a forward line that in the Premier League wouldn’t go amiss.”
Buckingham went on to state that he wants to challenge himself in “the highest place” possible to test his coaching abilities, which he believes the Saudi Pro League will give him the opportunity to do.
He concluded: “I think there’s so many things, whether it be cultural, whether it be religion, whether it be football, that I’d like to think, in this fourth [overseas] country now, that will make me not just a better coach, but will make me a better person.”
In FourFourTwo’s opinion, there is often a cynical eye cast over European players and managers making the switch to Saudi for career reasons, when the financial rewards on offer are so well publicised.
But managing internationally is Buckingham’s forte, and he’s done it in plenty of locations that are not known as money spinners.
Moreover, with Oxford likely being the best team he’s coached to this point, facing managers like Inzaghi, and some of the top-class players he mentions, will be a genuine experience-building opportunity, irrespective of his salary.
He’ll certainly have his work cut out, however, as he’ll be coming up against those stars for now, rather than coaching them.
