Al-Hilal reportedly tried to seduce Marcelino over the possibility of managing the Saudi club this summer despite Jorge Jesus being in charge of the Pro League side.
Speaking to Foot Mercato, Lille OSC manager Paulo Fonseca confirmed that he received offers from Olympique de Marseille and Al-Hilal this summer.
In his first season with Lille, he led the club to the Europa Conference League, and that form led to interest from Marseille and Al-Hilal.
The Saudi side made the coach, who is incredibly highly rated in Europe, an offer that was hard to refuse but the coach decided to remain at his current club Lille.
Speaking to the French outlet, Marcelino was very honest about the interest he received from the Saudi side this summer.
“I am going to be very honest. There were concrete offers from the two clubs you mentioned (Marseille and Al-Hilal). I have always prioritised continuing my career in Europe and in the best leagues,” said Fonseca.
Were Al-Hilal right not to get the Lille coach
Al-Hilal’s manager Jorge Jesus were certainly well-backed in the summer transfer market with Neymar, signed from Paris Saint-Germain for £77 million, and Aleksandar Mitrovic, who joined from Fulham for £50 million this summer.
The Saudi side are top of the Pro League and are pulling away from the rest although Al-Nassr are certainly still in the race for the Pro League title.
The Saudi side, however, struggled in the AFC Champions League as they drew 1-1, and only the winners of the 10 groups in the 40-team competition are guaranteed to advance to the last 16 and Al Hilal sit behind debutants Nassaji Mazandaran in the early standings.