Many were left surprised when Moussa Diaby departed Aston Villa after only 12 months at the club.
The Saudi Pro League has had a huge impact on the European market for several years now and they continued that surge this summer.
One of their big-name and money purchases was luring Moussa Diaby from Aston Villa to Al-Itihad – a team managed by Laurent Blanc, including featuring stars, such as Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kante.
The 25-year-old might have only been at the club for a small period of time, but he certainly made maximum impact.
Aston Villa reached the Champions League after decades in the wilderness, with Diaby scoring six goals and supplying eight assists in his debut campaign.
When Diaby first joined Villa from the Bundesliga, there was interest from Saudi Arabia for the winger, but he turned down those approaches and moved to the Premier League, instead.
But when they came knocking again, he couldn’t resist the chance to make a lucrative move in his career, even if he is at the peak of his powers and set to play in Europe’s elite competition.
It’s a small sample size, but how is Diaby getting on since swapping the Claret & Blue colours for the yellow and black of Al-Ittihad?
Moussa Diaby thriving for Al-Ittihad in the Saudi Pro League
The 11-cap France international is yet to score in seven matches in all competitions, but he does have seven assists to his name.
Al-Ittihad are one of the clubs that have been heavily backed since the Saudi Pro League decided to lure Europe’s top talents to the Middle East.
Last season, Al-Hilal, who have Neymar on their books, pipped Cristiano Ronaldo and his Al-Nassr side to the title, with Al-Itihad finishing fifth.
But Diaby has helped them start the new campaign strongly, with the team second, behind champions Al-Hilal, who have won all of their six matches, including their closest rivals 3-1 in August.
Diaby assisted during that match, but it wasn’t enough as former Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic netted a brace.
Jaden-Philogene Bidace is starting to shine after Moussa Diaby’s exit
Diaby’s exit also helped Villa meet the stranglehold-like demands of Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) and Financial Fair Play (FFP).
But when he left, Unai Emery still needed a replacement, that’s why he knocked on the door of Hull City and brought back Jaden-Philogene Bidace.
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Philogene starred for Villa against Bayern Munich and he is quickly showing that he is more than made to play at an elite level.
He is also quickly proving that it wasn’t a regret from Villa to let Diaby go because, as of this moment, they aren’t missing the speedster.
