RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 12: Gabriel Martinelli of Arsenal warms up prior to the pre-season friendly match between Arsenal FC and Como Calcio at Emirates Stadium on August 12, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images) | Arsenal FC via Getty Images
Arsenal are closing in on a deal to sell Gabriel Martinelli to Al-Hilal in the Saudi Pro League. The two clubs are about £7M apart in negotiations and confident they’ll agree to a fee, according to reports . The Brazilian winger would move for around £50M, which would make him Arsenal’s record sale by far, well-eclipsing Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s £38M mark. Arsenal have reportedly negotiated a sell-on fee of around 20% into the deal.
It seems as if Martinelli is open to the move, having rejected a move to Galatasaray earlier in the summer. What changed? The Saudi club will reportedly nearly double his wages to £17M a year (£327K per week). Get that bag, Gabby. If you’re going to move away from one of the top leagues in the prime of your career, make sure you get paid. And Gabriel Martinelli is getting paid.
Familiar names on the Saudi side include Moroccan international keeper Yassine Bounou, Kalidou Koulibaly, Theo Hernandez (really, I had no idea he was there), Ruben Neves, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Crysencio Summerville, and, wait for it, Karim Benzema. Ollie Watkins is reportedly heading there before the close of the window, too.
Arsenal will book all of the proceeds from a Martinelli sale as profit. They’ve long since paid off the £6M it cost to sign him from third-tier Ituano in Brazil in 2019. The Brazilian side will reportedly get between 15 and 20% of the fee. You’d expect the Gunners to put the bulk of the funds towards bringing in an attacking upgrade, although it won’t be simple. Top target Julian Alvarez has his heart set on Barcelona and Juventus has said Kenan Yildiz is not for sale — he also suffered a fractured bone in his foot and could miss up to two months.
I think I’ll save my reactions and the sentiments for when he inevitably (it seems, at this point) is actually sold. But Ian Wright isn’t a fan of how it has gone down . Specifically, Wright feels that the club have fallen short on communication to the Brazilian, saying that Martinelli is “not being spoken to, doesn’t know what’s going on.” I think we can all get a rough idea of who Wrighty’s sources are in all this.
What Ian Wright is saying doesn’t square with what Mikel Arteta said in his press conference before the Premier League opener. The manager emphasized the importance of honesty and transparency in the “both way” communication and difficult conversations that, at the end of the day, are part of the business of football.
Judging only on what is in the public sphere, my read is that Arsenal and Mikel Arteta told Gabriel Martinelli that there was a good chance he’d be moved before the close of the window and the Brazilian, understandably, didn’t take the news particularly well.
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