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Moussa Diaby's future at Al-Ittihad has been thrown into doubt by another spell of uncertainty, with the French star once again caught in shifting decisions at the Jeddah club. His situation at 'the Dean' has become increasingly unstable, as the club's stance has moved back and forth within days, leaving the player to deal with the fallout of that hesitation.

This is not the first time Diaby has found himself in such a position. The same pattern unfolded last summer, when he initially refused to leave Al-Ittihad despite receiving an offer from Inter Milan in Italy, before the club's management later persuaded him to consider a transfer. The French winger then began preparing for a move and the start of a new phase in his career.

After that came an unexpected twist. The management reversed course at the final moment, abandoned the idea of selling him and blocked his departure. Diaby was brought back into the Al-Ittihad squad even though he had already started to adjust mentally and technically to leaving, and observers believe that this affected both his level and his performances on the pitch.

Now the same story is unfolding again, but in a more obvious way. Al-Ittihad's management informed Diaby that it wanted to sell him and asked him to begin discussions regarding his financial dues, which led the player to open negotiations with Bayer Leverkusen of Germany and move into an advanced stage in talks over a transfer.

Diaby agrees, and Al-Ittihad changes course again

But just when Diaby had reached an agreement with Leverkusen, Al-Ittihad altered its stance yet again. Suddenly, the discussion shifted towards the player staying and not being sold, pushing the deal into another complicated phase, despite the fact that Diaby had acted in line with his club's desire for him to leave.

The issue is not merely whether the transfer eventually goes through or falls apart. The bigger concern is the way the matter has been managed from the beginning. When a player is asked to look for a new club, enters negotiations and reaches an agreement, it is only natural for him to expect that decision to be respected, rather than being confronted with a fresh twist that places his entire future in doubt.

What makes the situation even more striking is that neither option appears to have been fully closed off. A decision to keep Diaby today could easily become approval for his exit tomorrow, leaving him in a constant state of uncertainty, unsure whether he should prepare for another season in Jeddah or get ready to move to Germany.

Who pays the price for this hesitation?

Within just a few weeks, Diaby has gone from being a player Al-Ittihad wanted to sell, to one they wanted to keep, to someone who could be put back on the departures list at any moment. Such instability does not help the player settle, nor does it offer the technical staff a clear idea of which players they are supposed to build the coming season around.

The greater risk is that this repeated pattern could once again produce technical and psychological consequences. Diaby went through the same experience last season, when the management changed its decision at the last minute after he had come close to leaving, and the impact was reflected in his output.

Diaby's current problem therefore appears to be linked not to his quality on the pitch, but to Al-Ittihad's inability to take a firm position on his future. If the player is to be sold, then the decision should be clear and final. If the club wants him to stay, then it must provide him with stability and confidence instead of leaving him in a grey area where the 'transfer' file can shift from a final call to a mere possibility that can change at any time.