Al-Ittihad head coach Jens Wissing has revealed the real reason behind Moussa Diaby's absence from the King's Cup clash with Al-Najma.
The German guided his side to a comfortable 3-0 win over Al-Najma on Tuesday at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Buraidah, in the round of 32 of the King's Cup.
Diaby was nowhere to be seen. The French winger missed out on both the starting line-up and the bench, sparking talk of a possible exit with Bayer Leverkusen keen to bring him back.
Wissing shot down that speculation at his post-match press conference, as reported by the Saudi newspaper "Asharq Al-Awsat". He confirmed the winger sat out purely to rest.
"We decided to rest Moussa Diaby," he explained. "I have 23 players, and in every match I choose the players most ready to take part."
He added: "I'm happy with the team's performance, and we deserved the win. We could have scored more goals. That's why I'm happy with what we produced, and now we have to prepare for the next match."
A stern test now awaits. Al-Ittihad travel to face Al-Qadsiah in the second round of the Roshn League, having stumbled to a 1-1 draw against Al-Khaleej in their opener.