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From 32 to 914 million francs. For example, the editions of the Saudi Pro League have developed from the 2022/23 season to the 2023/24 season. And costs for the current season could continue to rise.
These amounts do not include the sometimes astronomical salaries that brought the stars to Saudi Arabia. The three who exceed expectations: Cristiano Ronaldo (38) with a reported annual salary of 190 million francs, Neymar (31) with 160 million and Karim Benzema (36) with 55 million. And especially Benzema, an important face for the Saudi project as a devout Muslim and winner of the 2022 Ballon d’Or, always makes negative headlines.
The ideal Saudi world is crumbling
Benzema was recently left out of Al-Ittihad’s training camp squad because he missed the start of training after the holidays. From a sporting perspective, there is disappointment that the reigning champions are in hibernation in seventh place, despite a new superstar as captain. With nine competition goals, Benzema cannot keep up with the top scorers of the competition. Cristiano Ronaldo, for example, leads this with twenty goals. Firas Al-Buraikan (23), the most valuable player of the Saudi national team with a market value of 4 million, also precedes him with eleven competition goals. Benzema is now also under scrutiny in Saudi Arabia.
Rumors immediately started circulating that major European clubs were working on a transfer. Unlike Jordan Henderson, whose desert adventure ended in financial fiasco, the Frenchman’s escape to Saudi Arabia this winter is considered highly unlikely. The damage to the image would be too great to lose one of the figureheads after such a short time.
The Saudis allowed the Englishman Jordan Henderson to move to Amsterdam after only six months. Henderson wanted to help develop football in the country before the trend changed. There are therefore fears in England that Saudi clubs will become more cautious about signing players from the island, the Telegraph reports. From a consultant’s perspective, it’s understandable: nowhere else in the world are commissions likely to be so lucrative. But the fears are unfounded: a Saudi League insider described the Henderson situation as a “start-up problem” and denied that Englishmen could therefore be overlooked in future transfers.
Garcia replaces the latest Saudi transfer
This statement alone shows why the hype surrounding Saudi Arabia will not disappear as quickly as that surrounding China. The project is designed for the long term with virtually inexhaustible financial resources. The fact that two debutants are having a hard time doesn’t change that. Perhaps one or two players will think more carefully about venturing into the desert. There are also plenty of footballers in Europe who do not find happiness after the transfer.
In any case, Renan Lodi was not deterred by the examples of Benzema and Henderson. The 25-year-old Brazilian and 19-time national player moves from Olympique Marseille to Al-Hilal for approximately 23 million in his best football days. In the French coastal city he will be replaced by the Swiss Ulisses Garcia. Lodi is the first million-dollar signing in the Saudi League this winter, but certainly not the last.
Source : Blick
I’m Emma Jack, a news website author at 24 News Reporters. I have been in the industry for over five years and it has been an incredible journey so far. I specialize in sports reporting and am highly knowledgeable about the latest trends and developments in this field.
