Moussa Diaby, a 24-year-old France international, becomes Aston Villa's third major signing of the summer after Pau Torres and Youri Tielemans; Arsenal and Newcastle were interested in the winger previously; Monchi has arrived as new sporting director this summer
Saturday 22 July 2023 21:29, UK
Aston Villa have confirmed the signing of winger Moussa Diaby from Bayer Leverkusen.
The 24-year-old moves to Villa Park from an undisclosed fee and has already joined up with his new team-mates on the club's tour of USA.
Diaby, who scored 14 goals and registered 11 assists across all competitions last season, had previously been of interest to Arsenal and Newcastle.
Sky Sports News understands Leverkusen had been quoting as much as £88m for Diaby as recently as last summer.
The France international becomes Aston Villa's third summer signing.
Diaby has 10 senior France caps but was not part of the squad that reached the World Cup final in Qatar last year.
Having come up through the ranks at hometown club Paris St Germain, Diaby moved to Leverkusen in 2019. He scored 49 goals in 172 appearances for the Bundesliga side before completing his switch to Villa Park.
Villa completed the deal despite reported interest in Diaby from Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr, and he will now form a vital part of a squad that will enter the Europa Conference League having finished seventh in the Premier League last year.
Villa have already signed defender Pau Torres from Villarreal and free agent midfielder Youri Tielemans after his exit from Leicester this summer.
It has been a summer of change at Villa Park with Monchi appointed as the new sporting director.
Monchi previously worked with head coach Unai Emery at Sevilla.
Who will be on the move this summer when the transfer window opens on June 14 and closes at 11pm on September 1 in England and midnight in Scotland?
Keep up to date with all the latest transfer news and rumours in our dedicated Transfer Centre blog on Sky Sports' digital platforms. You can also catch up with the ins, outs and analysis on Sky Sports News.
