Conflicting reports over the financial terms of Darwin Nunez’s loan move from Al Hilal to Al-Diriyah have sparked widespread debate, with particular focus on whether Al Hilal will pay €10m of the Uruguay striker’s wages.
The figures circulating in recent hours suggested that Al Hilal would continue to cover approximately €10m of Nunez’s annual salary during his spell away from the club. Al-Diriyah, according to those reports, would pay the player the remaining €5m from a total annual wage of €15m.
Those claims quickly attracted attention from supporters, who questioned the financial logic of Al Hilal covering the majority of the salary of a player temporarily joining another club. The issue has emerged as Saudi clubs seek to manage their squads and budgets more efficiently, making the reported structure of Nunez’s loan a subject of particular scrutiny.
However, the reported arrangement has since been challenged by a contrasting account from Saudi newspaper Al Yaum.
The newspaper reported that Al Hilal would not pay any part of Nunez’s salary while he is with Al-Diriyah. According to that version of events, the claims that Al Hilal would contribute €10m to the striker’s wages do not reflect the actual agreement.
That would leave Al-Diriyah responsible for Nunez’s salary throughout the loan period, with Al Hilal facing no additional financial burden in relation to his wages.
The two competing accounts mean that the precise financial details of the deal remain unclear. One version says Al Hilal will pay €10m of the player’s annual salary, while the other rejects that claim entirely and places responsibility for the full wage with Al-Diriyah.
The final position is therefore expected to depend on the official details of the contract and the agreement reached between the clubs. Until those details are confirmed, the reported €10m figure will remain at the centre of the debate surrounding Nunez’s move.
The controversy has also shifted attention away from the transfer itself and towards the cost of the loan. Rather than being viewed simply as Nunez moving from Al Hilal to Al-Diriyah, the deal is now being discussed primarily in terms of who will pay the striker and what the arrangement means financially for both clubs.
Supporters are awaiting a definitive explanation to establish which version is accurate and whether Al Hilal has any responsibility for the €15m-a-year salary. The subject has generated further discussion on Kooora forums, where fans have been examining the competing claims and the possible implications of the loan agreement.
For now, the available reports offer no single confirmed account of the wage arrangements. The first suggests that Al Hilal will shoulder €10m, while the report from Al Yaum says the club will pay nothing, leaving the full cost with Al-Diriyah during Nunez’s time at the club.