Ivan Toney, a forward for Brentford, was being pursued by Arsenal, Tottenham, and Chelsea prior to his decision to join Al-Ahli in the Saudi Pro League.
On Friday, Ivan Toney made the game-changing transfer to Al-Ahli, a Saudi Pro League team. The 28-year-old, who was being linked to transfers to Chelsea, Arsenal, and Tottenham, departed Brentford in a transaction estimated to be worth £40 million as he gets ready to play club football for the first time in his career outside of England.
After watching Brentford defeat Southampton 3-1 on Saturday, Toney left for the Middle East to finalise his transfer to Al-Ahli. The Jeddah-based team will include the England international on the pitch with players like Riyad Mahrez, Roberto Firmino, and Gabri Veiga.
At this point in his career, it’s a game-changing decision for Toney, as the former Newcastle attacker will now receive a tax-free weekly salary of £400,000. His pay would approach £500,000 with performance-related bonuses and add-ons, making him one of the highest-paid English athletes in the league.
Compared to the alleged £36,000 weekly salary he was pocketing at Brentford, this is an opulent boost. Considering that he began his senior career at Northampton, his new earnings seem even more substantial. With a year remaining on his Brentford deal, Toney decided to take a lucrative job offer in Saudi Arabia.
Toney’s departure from Brentford seemed inevitable during the summer transfer season. But where he will go next was still unknown. He was considering a transfer to another Premier League team, and Tottenham, Arsenal, and Chelsea had surfaced as obvious contenders in addition to Manchester United.
However, with United paying £36.5 million for Joshua Zirkzee and Tottenham paying £65 million for Dominic Solanke, his only practical Premier League choices were Chelsea and Arsenal. Toney chose to embark on a new journey with Al-Ahli, even though those two seemed like reasonable choices.
This is undoubtedly an incentive that Toney has taken advantage of to join the Saudi revolution, as certain players, like former Arsenal midfielder Tim Akinola, have acknowledged that they are considering going to the Middle East for financial reasons. After Harry Kane, it is said that Toney is currently the second-highest paid Englishman.
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