Spanish defender Aymeric Laporte, currently playing for Athletic Bilbao, revealed the behind-the-scenes details of his experience with Saudi Arabia's Al-Nassr, clarifying the reasons that led him to move to the Saudi league.
Laporte spoke in remarks reported by the Portuguese newspaper "Record" about his transfer to Al-Nassr in 2023, after losing part of his role at Manchester City. He confirmed that returning to Athletic Bilbao was his primary desire, but the Spanish club was unable to pay the transfer fee demanded by the English club.
Laporte said: "I was playing fewer minutes, and it was difficult to complete a transfer within Europe. In my mind, there was only returning to Athletic Bilbao, but the club was not able to pay the transfer value requested by Manchester City."
He added: "Al-Nassr was the only club capable of paying this amount, so I seized the opportunity. They had signed Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mané, and I told myself: Why not try it for two years?"
The Spanish defender indicated that life in Saudi Arabia had some positives but was not without difficulties, most notably traffic congestion.
He explained: "The experience in Saudi Arabia can be good if you are someone who likes staying at home, because there is a lot of congestion. It used to take me between 45 minutes and an hour and fifteen minutes to get to training, and if I wanted to leave the house, it would take another hour."
He continued: "I spent five hours a day in the car, which made traveling with my family difficult. There are very good points and very bad ones."
Laporte talks about representing Spain instead of France
Laporte also discussed his decision to represent the Spanish national team instead of France, clarifying that not being included in the French team's plans was one of the main reasons behind changing his sporting nationality.
He said: "I was born in France and lived there until the age of 15, and my entire family is French, but Athletic Bilbao embraced me, and I developed more here. Also, the French coach did not rely on me, so I made the decision to change."
Laporte obtained Spanish citizenship in 2021, before becoming a member of the Spanish national team, with whom he won the UEFA Nations League, Euro 2024, and the 2026 World Cup.
Laporte returned to Athletic Bilbao after leaving Al-Nassr, continuing his career with the club where he launched his senior team journey.
