See top footballers who have moved to Saudi Arabia, cashing in on huge wages

 

The 2023 summer transfer window has so far been filled with shock transfers, as several big-name footballers, including Ruben Neves, Karim Benzema, and Roberto Firmino, have made moves to clubs in Saudi Arabia for lucrative offers.

With the Saudi’s still hungry for star players, more are expected to follow suit.

Below is a list of every high-profile player that has made a transfer to the Saudi Pro League since the window opened on July 1. The transfer window is set to close on September 20.

Fabinho Tavares – Al Ittihad

Ex-Liverpool midfielder Fabinho has joined the Saudi express after completing a move to Al-Ittihad, where he will link up with Ngolo Kante, Karim Benzema, and former Wolves and Spurs boss Nuno Espirito Santo. Also, he will reunite with former Liverpool teammates, Roberto Firmino and Jordan Henderson in Saudi Arabia.

Age: 29

Signed from: Liverpool

Fee: £40m

Reported wage: Undisclosed

 

Sadio Mane – Al Nassr

Sadio Mane, the former Liverpool forward, has made a move to Saudi Pro League team Al Nassr from Bayern Munich. After leaving Anfield, he spent just a year in the Bundesliga before making this transfer. At Al Nassr, Mane will now have the opportunity to play alongside former Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo, who also recently joined the club.

Age: 31
Signed from: Bayern Munich
Fee: £24m
Reported wage: £33m per year

 

Allan Saint-Maximin – Al Ahli

Allan Saint-Maximin is set to team up with former Manchester City winger Riyad Mahrez and ex-Liverpool striker Roberto Firmino in Al Ahli’s attacking line. During his time at Newcastle, Maximin scored 13 goals in 124 games and provided 21 assists after joining from Nice in August 2019.

Age: 26
Signed from: Newcastle
Fee: £23m
Reported wage: unknown

 

Riyad Mahrez – Al Ahli

Riyad Mahrez has completed his move from Manchester City to Saudi Arabian club Al Ahli. City agreed a fee understood to be worth up to £30m with Al Ahli for the Algeria international.

Age: 32
Signed from: Man City
Fee: £30m
Reported wage: £25.6m per year

 

Jordan Henderson – Al Ettifaq

Jordan Henderson has ended his 12-year stay at Liverpool, during which he won every major trophy. Henderson is set to link up again with ex-Liverpool captain and former teammate Steven Gerrard, who is currently the manager of Al Ettifaq.

Age: 33
Signed from: Liverpool
Fee: £12m
Reported wage: £18.2m per year

 

Karim Benzema – Al Ittihad

The reigning Ballon d’Or winner, Benzema, followed his former Real Madrid teammate Ronaldo to Saudi Arabia, leaving the Spanish capital after his contract expired. He departed after a successful tenure that saw him win five Champions League titles during his stay.

Age: 35
Signed from: Real Madrid
Fee: Free transfer
Reported wage: £172m per year

 

Roberto Firmino – Al Ahli

Firmino, the highest-scoring Brazilian in Premier League history, enjoyed a long and emotional farewell to the Liverpool supporters. He had been a firm favorite among the fans during his eight-year stint at Anfield.

Age: 31
Signed from: Liverpool
Fee: Free transfer
Reported wage: £17m per year

 

N’golo Kante – Al Ittihad

 

Similar to his fellow France international Benzema, Kante also moved to the Gulf on a free transfer, choosing to depart Chelsea at the end of his contract. However, there were significant concerns regarding his fitness at the time of the transfer.

Age: 32
Signed from: Chelsea
Fee: Free transfer
Reported wage: £86.2m per year

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Edouard Mendy – Al Ahli

Mendy lost his position as the first-choice goalkeeper at Chelsea after joining the club in 2020. He only made 10 Premier League appearances last season before deciding to make a move to Saudi Arabia.

Age: 31
Signed from: Chelsea
Reported fee: £16m
Reported wage: £9.4m per year

 

Ruben Neves – Al Hilal

Portugal international Neves played a significant role in helping Wolves secure promotion from the Sky Bet Championship before featuring in five Premier League campaigns at Molineux. His performances established him as one of the most highly-regarded midfielders in the division, which ultimately led to a reported £47m move.

Age: 26
Signed from: Wolves
Fee: £47m
Reported wage: £15.6m per year

 

Jota – Al Ittihad

After scoring 15 goals and contributing to Celtic’s domestic treble victory, former Portugal youth international Jota attracted significant attention from investors in Saudi Arabia. Consequently, he made a £25m move to the Saudi Arabian club at the beginning of July.

Age: 24
Signed from: Celtic
Fee: £25m
Reported wage: £10m per year

 

Kalidou Koulibaly – Al Hilal

After spending just a single season at Stamford Bridge, Senegal centre-back Koulibaly left Chelsea for a fee in the region of £20m. Following him closely was a team-mate and compatriot, who also made a departure from the club.

Age: 32
Signed from: Chelsea
Fee: £17m
Reported wage: £30m per year

 

Marcelo Brozovic – Al Nassr

Brozovic bid farewell to Inter Milan after leading the Serie A side as captain in their Champions League final defeat against Manchester City. The 30-year-old Croatia midfielder will be heading to Saudi Arabia after spending eight seasons with Inter and winning five major trophies in Italy.

Age: 30
Signed from: Inter Milan
Fee: £15m
Reported wage: £35m per year

 

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic – Al Hilal

Milinkovic-Savic, who was Lazio’s player of the season in 2020-21 and 2021-22, was highly regarded as a midfielder who would excel at the highest level of European football. However, he will now be plying his trade in the Saudi Pro League following a reported £34.3m transfer.

Age: 28
Signed from: Lazio
Fee: £34m
Reported wage: £17m per year

 

Seko Fofana – Al Nassr

The Ivory Coast International has signed a three-year deal with Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr side. Fofana made the move to Saudi Arabia after playing a crucial role in helping Lens secure a second-place finish in Ligue 1, just behind champions Paris Saint-Germain.

Age: 28
Signed from: Lens
Fee: £21.5m
Reported wage: £12.9m per year

 

Malcom – Al Hilal

After securing the signings of Koulibaly, Neves, and Milinkovic-Savic, Al Hilal continued to strengthen their squad by bringing in the Brazil international, who was the top scorer in Russia as Zenit clinched the league title.

Age: 26
Signed from: Zenit St Petersburg
Fee: £51.5m
Reported wage: £18.2m per year

 

Moussa Dembele – Al Ettifaq

The former Celtic striker departed Lyon after scoring only three goals in the 2022/23 season. He signed a four-year contract and will now join Steven Gerrard and Jordan Henderson in Saudi Arabia.

Age: 27
Signed from: Lyon
Fee: Free
Reported wage: Unknown

 

Jack Hendry – Al Ettifaq

The Scotland international joined Club Brugge in 2021 and featured in 32 matches in the Belgian Pro League. After spending time on loan with Cremonese in Serie A last season, he couldn’t resist the opportunity to play under Steven Gerrard and decided to make the move.

Age: 28
Signed from: Club Brugge
Fee: £6.5m
Reported wage: £15.2m per year.