The rise of Moussa Diaby

Bayer Leverkusen went into the weekend level on points with perennial champions Bayern Munich. They faced the Bavarians on Sunday and were 5-0 down at half-time. The title race isn’t necessarily over but it is a major blow for this exciting and promising Leverkusen side.

📈 Scored in EVERY game this season (UEFA's 'Top 5' leagues; all comps):

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🇩🇪 Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen
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Leverkusen, though, must remain extremely happy with their immediate improvement under former Young Boys boss Gerardo Seoane. They play a slick and entertaining style that thrills the neutral with a genuine effectiveness – most of the time. One of the key players in this revitalised Leverkusen side is Moussa Diaby: a truly exceptional prospect.

PSG & Crotone

The vanity project that is Paris Saint-Germain often overlooks their own youth prospects. With a catchment area the size of Paris with the talent available, it is serious neglect that so few end up making it into the PSG first-team. Celebrity status and reputation often comes before those that have come through the system.

Moussa Diaby, whilst he might eventually return to his hometown team, is another example of a player not making the grade at PSG. He played 25 times in Ligue 1, scoring two goals in the 2018-19 campaign. That spell in the first-team came the season after a half-a-season-long loan at Serie A side Crotone where he managed just two appearances.

The vibrant winger, though, took advantage of the interest and attention he gathered with his few eye-catching PSG displays in 18/19 and took the responsible decision to move on and play regularly at a major European club. On the way to Germany he went. 

Loving it at Leverkusen

Since joining Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2019, Moussa Diaby has become one of the best wingers in the Bundesliga.

The COVID-19 pandemic enforced break in the football season and the Bundesliga returning first meant a lot of attention turned to the German domestic league. Leverkusen were running riot looking to break into the top four and qualify for the UEFA Champions League with Diaby at the heart of it. 

©Bayer 04 Leverkusen

His excellent performance against Rangers in August 2020 in the UEFA Europa League also gained wide plaudits. The Frenchman drifted last season as the intense schedule caught up with a lot of players but he has come into this season in electrifying form.

He has started every game so far this season for Leverkusen as they seek to mount a genuine title challenge, albeit that ambition may remain unlikely. They should be set for a long run into the latter stages of the UEFA Europa League with Diaby at the heart of most, if not all, of what they do right in the final third. 

International breakthrough

He has been a regular in France youth teams in the past half a decade or so, even captaining the under-20 side on several occasions.

However, it wasn’t until this year when he made his France debut. He made his debut in the September international break in a 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Bosnia-Herzegovina before once again featuring in the French squad as Les Bleus became the second team to win the UEFA Nations League.

The future

The world truly is Moussa Diaby’s oyster. This is a player with the potential to do anything. There was already a concern that he might not fulfil his abundance of potential when he was shipped out of PSG but, at the age of just 22, he has established himself as one of the best players in a major European league as well as breaking into the squad of the world champions.

©Getty / Michael Regan

He has been linked quite often with Liverpool and his style of play could suit their high-pressing, high-intensity style of play with similar attributes to that of Sadio Mane in terms of his technique and incision in the final third. 

A sharp technique that oozes gracefulness is complimented by a smooth ability to drift past players with ease but remain direct and incisive enough to look menacing rather than deceptively enticing when baring down on the opposition.

He remains clear in his decision-making process when in dangerous positions that allows him to contribute to goals and assists with regular ease – as he has done on five occasions this season, in just eight matches.