Anis Hadj Moussa has changed his Instagram profile picture after his proposed move from Feyenoord to Al-Ittihad fell through.
The 24-year-old Algeria right winger had previously used an image of himself wearing the Feyenoord shirt. His new profile picture shows him in an Algeria shirt while wearing an oxygen mask.
The change appears to be a response to the collapse of negotiations with Al-Ittihad, one of Saudi Arabia’s leading clubs. The Saudi side had reached an agreement with Feyenoord over a transfer worth approximately 40m euros.
However, the deal was not completed because Al-Ittihad either could not provide, or chose not to provide, a bank guarantee requested by the Dutch club.
Feyenoord’s position was shaped by its previous experience with another Saudi Arabian club, Al-Nassr. The Rotterdam club had encountered difficulties during David Hancko’s departure and was therefore seeking additional financial security before allowing Hadj Moussa to leave.
That security was expected to come in the form of a bank guarantee. As the required guarantee was not supplied, the proposed transfer was unable to proceed.
Hadj Moussa’s Instagram change is the first visible public indication of his reaction to the failed move. The image does not include a written statement, meaning the exact message behind the oxygen mask remains unclear. Nevertheless, the timing of the change, together with the imagery used, suggests it was connected to the breakdown of the transfer.
The Algerian forward had been at the centre of a deal that would have taken him from Feyenoord to Al-Ittihad for a fee of around 40m euros. The agreement between the clubs had appeared to provide the basis for the move, but the outstanding financial guarantee became decisive.
For Feyenoord, the issue was not simply the transfer fee. The club wanted protection against the financial risk associated with completing the transaction, particularly after its experience with Al-Nassr in connection with Hancko’s departure.
Without that protection, the Rotterdam club did not complete the transfer. As a result, Hadj Moussa remains associated with Feyenoord, while Al-Ittihad’s attempt to sign the Algeria international has ended without an agreement being finalised.
The failed move is reflected only indirectly through Hadj Moussa’s revised Instagram image. His previous Feyenoord-themed picture has been replaced by a photograph highlighting his Algeria shirt and the oxygen mask, an image that has been interpreted as a reaction to a transfer that ultimately did not take place.