Saint-Maximin on Al Ahli, RSL-family life balance

Allan Saint-Maximin is many things: a footballer, someone who cares deeply about giving back, and a lover of life.

But, before anything else, he is a father.

The 27-year-old, from the small French town of Chatenay-Malabry, is dad to three young children - two girls and a boy - and it’s their success and enjoyment that motivates him the most.

It’s part of the reason, the Al Ahli winger explained in a wide-ranging interview with the Roshn Saudi League, that he has adapted to life in Jeddah so comfortably.

Owing to the different climatic conditions to Europe, the training schedule is such that Saint-Maximin’s club commitments don’t take place until later in the afternoon or evening. Thus, it allows him almost a full day to dedicate to his children.

That means trips to the bowling alley or the arcade, or the all-important school drop-offs and pick-ups - the things that mean so much to kids of that age. It’s that work-life balance on offer in Saudi Arabia that is so appealing to Saint-Maximin.

“Life in Saudi is so good, because you can still do your job while going training,” the former Newcastle United star said. “But because you go late, you have the time to do everything you need with your family.

“And for me, this is a real, real gift. I'm really happy about this, and it's good, because I can always have a chat with the kids to see what they want to do; if they want to go back home, if they want to go to the bowling alley or any place.

“It's a moment I really enjoy when I come to take them [to school] so I can talk to them, I can have a cuddle with them, it's the best.

“I always try to listen and try to give my time to them. It's always the best things for me, you know, for them to have the chance to be with Mum and Dad.”

Having played the previous four years in the north of England with Newcastle United, it’s easy to understand why Saint-Maximin would be drawn to the lifestyle of the Saudi coastal city, with it’s almost year-round sunshine and abundant palm trees. It’s an environment that fuels the soul.

It’s why he has no regrets about leaving the heights of the English Premier League behind to move to what he says will soon be one of the best leagues in the world.

“It's great here,” Saint-Maximin remarked. “And I don't say this because I have to say it, just because it's true. I really enjoy my life here, and if I will not enjoy, I would just go back in Europe, to be to be honest.

“When I see everything, and especially when you hear, after I have a talk with Riyad Mahrez, after I talk with Edu [Edouard Mendy], Bobby [Roberto] Firmino, you know, the choice was, ‘I'm not going to stay in Europe, and it's my time to move’.”

Evidently, the decision is reaping its reward.

“I didn't expect the welcome like this, from the fans, from the people and all of this,” Saint-Maximin said. “And when I arrived in Saudi, and in Jeddah, I really understand why I made that decision. I was very happy.

“When you play the first game with the fans and all of this, you are like: ‘OK, you are in the right place’.”

He added about the RSL: “I mean, we can be like one of the best leagues in the world, and I'm sure about this.

“If we keep in the same direction, and if we keep [signing] a lot of players in even more teams, we can have one of the best leagues, for sure.”

The enjoyment off the pitch is clear in Saint-Maximin’s performances on it, with four goals and nine assists in his debut season helping Al Ahli to a third-placed finish in their first campaign back in the top flight after a season in the second division.

Competing alongside elite talent like Mahrez and Firmino doesn’t hurt, either.

“I'm very happy to be able to play with one of the best wingers in the world in Riyad, to play with Firmino, to have a very good keeper as well,” Saint-Maximin said.

“We have some very good young players like Iba [Roger Ibanez] and [Merih] Demiral, young players that did quite a lot. So, we have a very, very good squad.”

With a full campaign in the RSL already under his belt, and now fully acclimatised to the weather and different conditions in Jeddah, next season will no doubt be bigger and better for ‘ASM’.

But first, the off-season and time doing what he loves most: spending time with his children.

The full interview, filmed during a day the RSL spent with Saint-Maximin, can be viewed here: