Pioli had already been very close to signing a contract with Saudi side Al Ittihad over the summer, only for the whole thing to fall apart when the flight was practically booked.

Now he is back on the radar of that league for Al Nassr, who today formally fired coach Luis Castro just three games into the season.

Castro had taken the job 14 months ago and was at the helm of a team including former Juventus man Cristiano Ronaldo and ex-Inter midfielder Marcelo Brozovic.

Pioli is still technically under contract with Milan, who dismissed him in May just two years after winning the Scudetto.

He must therefore terminate that deal by mutual consent first before he can put pen to paper for Al Nassr.