Former Manchester City defender Aymeric Laporte has voiced is discontent at life in the Saudi Pro League, less than six months on from his move to the Middle East.
After a summer of recruitment that saw a host of big names make the move from European Football, it hasn't taken long for many to air their grievances at life in Saudi Arabia.
Jordan Henderson has already left the country with his reputation in tatters, having fled the Steven Gerrard-managed Al-Ettifaq for Ajax, while Karim Benzema is another player who is said to be unhappy with the lifestyle.
Laporte has all but confirmed that a number of the new recruits are less than satisfied, as the Al-Nassr man laid it all bare to Spanish publication AS.
"They have not made it easy for us," said the Spain international. "In fact, there are many players that are discontented. We are working on it every day, negotiating so to speak, and to see 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."
SIUUUUUUUU @AlNassrFC pic.twitter.com/jxOOjviFnq
— Aymeric Laporte (@Laporte) November 4, 2023
Aymeric Laporte complains about life in Saudi Arabia
Another unexpected gripe of Laporte's is the level of traffic he is having to deal with in Riyadh as he makes his way to training and games. Anyone who has been to Manchester will know that the traffic there is almost as bad as Dublin, so it seems strange that Laporte isn't used to it, having spent over five years playing for Pep Guardiola's Man City side.
"Many of us have also come here not only for football,” adds the 29-year-old. “Many of us are happy with that, but I am also looking for something beyond that is not the economic part and such. In terms of quality of life, I expected something different because in the end here you spend three hours a day in the car. Riyadh is a waste of traffic, of time wasted in the car."
Laporte's teammate Cristiano Ronaldo appears to have settled in much better than the defender, with the global icon regularly defending the Saudi league and lifestyle from criticism. Speaking at an awards event in Dubai earlier this week, Ronaldo maintained that the Pro League is better than Ligue 1 in France, although it would be difficult to see many other players agreeing with him.
