Al-Ittihad Loans Unai Hernandez to Girona for Season

Al-Ittihad have reached an agreement with Girona to send Spanish midfielder Unai Hernandez to La Liga on loan, as the Jeddah club continue to reshape a squad in need of fresh balance.

According to Saudi newspaper Al-Riyadiah, the deal is for a season-long loan and includes an option for Girona to buy the player outright when the spell ends. The Catalan club will only cover a limited portion of his salary, with Al-Ittihad still responsible for the bulk of his wages.

The Al-Ittihad board examined Girona’s proposal and signed off on it as part of a broader clear-out and reset. For Hernandez, it is another sharp turn in a career that has yet to find a stable rhythm.

The midfielder joined Al-Ittihad from Barcelona in February 2025 on a three-year contract, arriving with the kind of technical schooling that usually commands patience. At first, he hinted at real value: 10 appearances, one goal, three assists. Then the minutes vanished.

Last season brought a stark illustration of that decline. Hernandez featured just once for Al-Ittihad, against Al-Nassr in the Saudi Super Cup semi-final, and even that cameo could not revive his status in the squad.

He was shipped out to Al-Shabab for the second half of the campaign. The game time came back – 31 matches – but the end product did not. No goals, one assist, plenty of running, yet little to shift the narrative around him.

Now comes Girona and a different kind of test. A return to Spanish football, a league that suits his profile, but without the safety net of a long runway. With an option to buy on the table, this loan will not just define his future at Al-Ittihad. It may decide whether his next permanent home lies back in Europe or somewhere else entirely.