Arsenal wages: Top 10 highest earners with Lewis-Skelly, Nwaneri set to move up

Arsenal have transformed themselves from a side who struggled to be competitive for a few years to one on the cusp of titles under Mikel Arteta.

A couple of second-placed Premier League finishes in a row highlight their change in fortunes. Beyond Arteta’s influence, that is down to the squad of star players having been assembled, with some Arsenal stars now some of the biggest names in the Premier League.

With big names come big salaries, and the Gunners pay more than every side except Manchester City. They could be set to pay even more, with youngsters Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri reportedly set for improved deals amid their great starts to senior football.

Here, we have looked at the current top 10 highest earners at the Emirates.

=9. Ben White – £150,000

White’s contract more than doubled in 2021 when he joined Arsenal from Brighton. The defender had been making £50,000 per week with the Seagulls, and was immediately handed £120,000 per week at the Emirates, per Capology.

After a couple of years worth of consistent performances on the Gunners’ quest for the Premier League title – all 38 games in 2022/23 and 37 games in 2023/24 – White was handed a new deal at the back end of the second of those seasons.

His contract was extended until 2028, with the option for a further year, and he was given improved terms, making £150,000 per week.

=9. Oleksandr Zinchenko – £150,000

Similarly to White, Zinchenko also got a massive increase on his wages when he headed to Arsenal. Surprisingly, having previously been at Manchester City, he was only making £20,000 per week.

At Arsenal, he was immediately given £150,000 per week. After nearly three years of football at the Emirates, he’s one of the high earners with the least time left on his deal – just one year come the end of the season.

With new signings always in the works, and Lewis-Skelly and Riccardo Calafiori playing more often than Zinchenko this season, we believe he’s fighting for his place at the Emirates.

8. Gabriel Martinelli – £180,000

Martinelli only briefly played senior football in his native Brazil before heading to Arsenal, and his wages have moved up as he’s become a more important member of the side.

His first season saw the winger earn £30,000 per week, reflecting his standing as a promising but unproven youngster, and that was quickly bumped up to £70,000 for the next couple of campaigns.

In the 2022/23 season, Martinelli scored 15 goals and provided five assists in the Premier League alone, so it should come as no surprise that part way through that campaign, he was offered a huge increase, to £180,000 per week.

So far, that has done enough to stave off interest from big sides, after it was suggested Barcelona were one of the clubs after Martinelli.

7. William Saliba – £190,000

Of late, it has been suggested that Saliba’s wages could rise to £250,000 per week. That would be the second time he’s been offered an improvement on his Arsenal terms, the first a large one from £40,000 to £190,000.

The reported figure would reflect his standing as not only one of the best players in the Gunners’ squad, but one of the very best defenders in the world.

It’s not only Arsenal who think that, though, with reports suggesting Manchester City and Real Madrid are both interested in the Frenchman.

At Real, three defenders – David Alaba, Antonio Rudiger and Eder Militao – all out-earn Saliba, and at City, both John Stones and Josko Gvardiol do. That shows the Arsenal defender that there could be more money made elsewhere, were he open to a move.

6. Bukayo Saka – £195,000

Saka’s £195,000-per-week contract is probably a low one given there are Premier League stars earning north of £300,000 per week, and he’s among the best players in the league.

That he has been directly involved in 100 top-flight goals at the age of 23 highlights that status.

Gunners legend Ian Wright has warned the club not to let Saka’s current deal run down much further – it’s set to expire in 2027, and his last extension came back in 2023.

Wright feels a situation like at Liverpool could occur, where star players could potentially be able to walk away for nothing.

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5. Thomas Partey – £200,000

Arsenal currently pay midfield man Partey £200,000 per week, but there’s a chance they won’t be doing that for long.

Indeed, he is out of contract at the end of the season, and there are varying reports on whether he’ll stay or not.

Some suggest he’ll be offered a new deal at the Emirates, and some that his entourage are sounding out clubs across Europe to attempt to find him a new home.

As it stands, the former Atletico Madrid midfielder will not be collecting a large wage from Arsenal for long, but that could change.

=3. Martin Odegaard – £240,000

Signed from Real Madrid permanently in 2021 for £30million, Odegaard was always likely to hit the heights for Arsenal.

But he was not being paid a premium by his previous employers, so the Gunners didn’t need to slap him on a huge contract, initially paying him just £80,000 per week.

Nearly four years, and over 70 direct goal contributions later, Odegaard is Arsenal’s captain, and earns £240,000 per week.

He has another four years left on his deal at the Emirates, highlighting his worth, and if he continues performing, he could be earning even more by the end of that.

=3. Declan Rice – £240,000

Rice is equal to Odegaard on £240,000 per week, having been lured in from West Ham with the promise of a large contract when his £105million transfer was confirmed in 2023.

The England international seems worth every penny of his transfer fee and contract when he pulls off performances like the one in the 2024/25 Champions League quarter-final first leg against Real Madrid, when he smashed in two direct free-kicks in the space of 13 minutes.

It seems Rice will be key to any success Arsenal have when he’s capable of such magnificent feats, and the club are happy to pay him the big bucks given that potential for heroism.

2. Gabriel Jesus – £265,000

Jesus spent six years at Manchester City, who have the highest wage bill in England, and in that time his gross pay was £26.52million.

In his first two seasons at Arsenal, he earned a gross amount of £27.56million. That owes to the fact he was underpaid by City’s standards – the most he earned per week was £90,000. At Arsenal, he earns almost three times that, at £265,000.

Only once has Jesus managed to surpass 10 goals in a campaign for the Gunners – having twice done it for City – which could explain why the Manchester outfit never paid him more money and were happy to sell him to a Premier League rival.

Given the Brazilian hasn’t lived up to his massive contract, he could lose his place at Arsenal, with some reports suggesting he’ll make way when a new striker signs, or could even be involved in a swap deal to bring one in.

1. Kai Havertz – £280,000

Havertz is currently Arsenal’s highest-paid player, his £280,000-per-week contract contributing to approximately 8.5 per cent of Arsenal’s entire wage bill.

He was already on a huge £250,000-per-week contract at Chelsea, so the Gunners had to pay big to convince him to sign.

Mikel Arteta has seemed keen for a while to add to his central attacking options, so it remains to be seen what that will mean for his highest earner, Havertz.

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