Villa winger Diaby close to £50.4m Saudi transfer

LONDON, United Kingdom, July 24 – Aston Villa winger Moussa Diaby is close to completing a transfer to Al-Ittihad for around £50.4 million.

The 25-year-old has travelled to Saudi Arabia to undergo a medical and complete the deal after just one season at Villa Park.

Diaby joined Villa from Bayer Leverkusen last summer for a club record fee of a reported £51.9million, but manager Unai Emery has decided to sell the France international.

This comes after the club re-signed Jaden Philogene from Hull, paying around £13.5million for the England winger this month, with the academy newcomer believed to have a big impact on his return.

Diaby made 54 appearances for Villa, scoring 10 goals and helping the club finish fourth in the Premier League, which led to qualification for the Champions League.

Villa have reshuffled their squad for the new season, selling midfielder Douglas Luiz to Juventus for £42.4m last month.

They signed both Samuel Iling-Junior and Enzo Barrenechea from the Italian club, while left-back Ian Maatsen joined from Chelsea for £35million and winger Lewis Dobbin for around £9million from Everton.