Bayer Leverkusen did not receive a single offer for Moussa Diaby over the summer despite reports linking Premier League moneybags Newcastle United with the £60 million-rated Bundesliga star, managing director Simon Rolfes tells The Express.
After a troubled start to the new season, both Diaby and Leverkusen certainly made up for lost time against Schalke this weekend.
During Xabi Alonso’s managerial debut at the Bay Arena, the former PSG starlet finally opened his account for 2022/23 with a thunderous shot from long range before setting up two more during the most emphatic of 4-0 wins. A timely reminder of Diaby’s wondrous talent.
“From when he joined three years ago compared to now, it’s not by coincidence that he scores more goals,” Rolfes says of a player who scored more league goals last season (13) than across his previous two campaigns combined.
“You can see it in training. He works a lot on his finishing. He missed a lot of goals a few years ago, also in training. But now it’s a different story.”
Will Moussa Diaby leave Bayer Leverkusen for Newcastle United?
Diaby, valued in the region of £60 million, continues to be linked with a mega-money move to St James’ Park. Newcastle, per i News, are not giving up on the jet-heeled France international, even if Shakhtar Donetsk’s Mykhaylo Mudryk has been lined up as a potential alternative.
Leicester City talisman James Maddison is another option.
And, with his contract running until 2025, Leverkusen are not going to let Diaby go without a fight.
“For sure, we want to keep Moussa for as long as possible,” Rolfes adds. “I know a lot of scouts have been sitting on our tribune during our matches because we have a lot of interesting, exciting young players with high potential.
“We did not receive any offers for him. We’re not even looking for that at the moment. We wanted to keep him and play Champions League football with him this season.”
Diaby was left out of France’s squad for the September international break; losing his place to the revitalised Ousmane Dembele. Build on that exhilarating performance against Schalke, however, and he will be back in contention for a World Cup spot before long.
“Very quickly, you realise that he has explosiveness,” Morade Djeddi, president of Diaby’s first club Esperance Paris 19e, told The Athletic recently. “An ability to take on his opponent and dribbling skills.
“I’m not comparing him to (Lionel) Messi. I’m just saying that Lionel Messi didn’t learn his dribbling anywhere. It’s the same for Moussa. He was born with it. Moussa has a supernatural, divine gift. A gift that some have and others don’t.”
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