Fabinho's Saudi Pro League wages compared to Karim Benzema and Jordan Henderson
- Fabinho has made a mega-money move to Saudi Arabia
- The midfielder will earn a huge sum to play in the Middle East
Fabinho joined Portuguese side Rio Ave on the same day that Nuno Espirito Santo was made manager of the club in the summer of 2012.
However, successive loan spells at Real Madrid and Monaco ensured that Fabinho never made a competitive appearance under the wily Portuguese coach, who shares the same super agent Jorge Mendes.
More than a decade later, Nuno will finally get the chance to field Fabinho after his Saudi Pro League champions Al Ittihad completed a £40m transfer for the Brazilian.
Here's how Fabinho's new wages compare to some of the other players that have swapped the European spotlight for Saudi Arabia.
What will Fabinho earn in Saudi Arabia?
Fabinho's £40m departure is Liverpool's largest sale since recouping nine figures when Philippe Coutinho joined Barcelona in 2018. However, El Flaco stands to earn considerably more than Coutinho did even under the Catalans' chaotic accounting practices.
Reports suggest that Fabinho will rake in £700,000 per week, £36.4m each season. After signing a new deal with Liverpool in 2021 - that was supposed to keep him on Merseyside until 2026 - Fabinho was taking home £180,000 per week, almost four times less than his new salary.
Only three players earned more than Fabinho at Liverpool last season; top scorer Mohamed Salah was on almost double Fabinho's fee following his bumper extension but Virgil van Dijk (£220,000 per week) and Thiago Alcantara (£200,000) were in a similar wage bracket.
What will Jordan Henderson earn in Saudi Arabia?
Just last season, Klopp described Liverpool's midfield trio of Jordan Henderson, Fabinho and Thiago as "a really tough cookie to play against". Now only Thiago remains.
While Fabinho's departure was a surprise, Henderson's move was viewed as a betrayal in some quarters. The long-term ally of the LGBTQ+ community was reunited with Steven Gerrard at Al Ettifaq in a country where homosexuality is illegal.
Henderson was persuaded to fly in the face of his stated beliefs after the offer of £700,000 per week - the same sum that Fabinho stands to earn.
Henderson collected £140,000 per week as Liverpool's captain last season. However, this figure is before taxation is taken into account. After fulfilling his obligations to HMRC, Henderson would have earned £4m per year - considerably less than the tax-free annual income of £36.4m he will collect in Saudi.
READ MORE ON THE UNBELIEVABLE WAGES ON OFFER IN SAUDI ARABIA
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What will N'Golo Kante earn in Saudi Arabia?
Fabinho is not the only fading Premier League midfielder to arrive at Al Ittihad this summer. N'Golo Kante didn't cost the Tigers a transfer fee as his Chelsea contract expired at the end of June but he hasn't arrived in Jeddah for cheap.
The 2018 World Cup winner stands to make £86m across his four-year contract at Al Ittihad - the equivalent of roughly £413,000 per week. Fabinho may earn more than Kante but he will hardly be the best-paid player in the team's dressing room this coming season.
What will Karim Benzema earn in Saudi Arabia?
The reigning Ballon d'Or holder commands a salary that almost no one else can match. Only Al Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo piles up more than Karim Benzema's obscene sum of £172m per year. Benzema earns the equivalent of the average annual salary in Saudi Arabia (including non-footballers) every 78 minutes.
Real Madrid's second-top scorer of all time made a lightning start to life at Al Ittihad, creating the equaliser and netting the winner on his debut for the Tigers. As a defensive midfielder, Fabinho will not offer the same game-changing contribution but Benzema will do well to replicate the disparity in wages between the pair with his performances on the pitch.
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