Stuck at the 40% Mark: Murad Housaawi's Move to the Pro League Hits a Snag
1 January 2026
Transfer stalemate and a 40% clause
A club from the Saudi First Division League (Yelo) has blocked Murad Housaawi's proposed move from Gulf to the Roshen Pro League's top clubs during the upcoming winter window.
Housaawi has drawn strong interest from three big Saudi clubs – Al Hilal, Al Nassr, and Al Ittihad – thanks to the impressive form he has shown with Gulf since the season started.
Housaawi's season and national team context
The sports newspaper Al-Riyadiyah reported that a clause blocks the deal for now, requiring Ohod—the club in Yelo that originally loaned him—to receive 40% of any future sale.
Housaawi moved from Ohod to Gulf in 2024 on loan, then joined Gulf permanently last summer, with a clause that 40 percent of any resale price would go to his first club.
The newspaper said Al Hilal, Al Nassr and Al Ittihad are pressing Ohod to drop the clause, offering monetary compensation or other perks to facilitate the deal and ease Gulf’s financial demands.
Gulf awaits concrete bids from Al Nassr and Al Ittihad to decide whether to sell Housaawi, after an initial offer from Al Hilal proved unsatisfactory to the club.
The 24-year-old has played 11 matches for Gulf in the Saudi league and the King’s Cup this season, scoring two goals and contributing two assists.
Housaawi made his Saudi national team debut last November and featured for the Green Falcons at the 2025 Arab Cup, playing two games without scoring or assisting.
In the end, if he moves, maybe the transfer window will finally learn how to pronounce his name correctly. Or maybe it will just file a complaint for being too dramatic.
Meanwhile, I’m here waiting for a transfer plot twist to drop that’s shorter than the 40% clause. Sniper joke time: if this transfer saga were a movie, the credits would roll with the 40% watermark.
