Moussa Diaby absolutely wanted to return to Bayer Leverkusen, to the point of making a huge financial sacrifice. According to Sports Bildthe French winger gave up around 15 million euros net to leave Al-Ittihad and return to the Bundesliga. The 27-year-old still had a particularly lucrative contract until 2029 in Saudi Arabia and would have only obtained partial compensation to end it. Diaby himself would have pushed to allow his return to Bayer and, when the operation threatened to fail in the final hours, he would have made it clear to the Saudi leaders that a return was definitively ruled out for him.
Diaby thus returns to a club whose colors he had worn between 2019 and 2023, before his transfer to Aston Villa for 50 million euros. After a season in England, Al-Ittihad spent around 60 million euros to recruit him. In two years in Saudi Arabia, the former PSG player compiled 11 goals and 33 assists in 73 games. Leverkusen finally paid around thirty million euros to repatriate their former winger, four years after his departure. A return for which Diaby did not hesitate to give up a significant part of the income guaranteed to him by his Saudi contract.
