Gone are the days when Arsenal was revered all around Europe. The men in red & white with Arsene Wenger at the helm conquered top-flight football in England. They also exhibited an exceptional style of play in continental competitions.
However, present-day Arsenal is just a shadow of its glorious past. Mikel Arteta and his squadron are doing their best to maintain their reputation of being one of Premier League's 'Big Six'. However, the start to the 2021-22 season has been the worst in the club's 135-year history.
Nevertheless, the Gunners are doing their best to get back on their feet again. They have made a few notable signings by splashing money this summer. They spent around £142m over the transfer window. This made them the biggest spenders this summer amongst all the clubs in Europe's top five leagues. While we will have to wait until the end of the season to see how they fare, let's take a deep dive into Arsenal's payroll this season.
Weekly Wages of Arsenal players
#26 Folarin Balogun — £2,300/Week
Lauded by pundits as the next Ian Wright, the New York native — Folarin Balogun joined Arsenal in 2020 after almost signing for their city rivals Tottenham.
Enjoying his first year at the Emirates Stadium, mostly in the Europa League, the youngster has now featured for Arsenal in two of their league games.
#25 Takehiro Tomiyasu — £13,000/Week
The former Bolognese defender, who can ace center and full-back roles, was signed by Arsenal on deadline day. He is tied to the club until 2025 with the option of an additional year.
He exhibited sparks of brilliance in the J1 League and the Belgian League. Now, the Japanese international is awaiting an opportunity to make his mark in one of Europe's top-five leagues.
#24 Emile Smith Rowe — £20,000/Week
Deployed at the heart of Arsenal's midfield, Mikel Arteta's trusted player Emile Smith-Rowe is next on our list.
Even though the Londoners displayed poor performances in their first three games, Smith Rowe had his share of brilliance. The 23-year-old is seemingly Arsenal's answer to long-due midfield issues.
#23 Nuno Tavares — £27,000/Week
Rising through the ranks of Benfica, Nuno Tavares arrived at Arsenal's training facility this summer as another youth star to be given the opportunity by gaffer Mikel Arteta.
The promising left-back also made an appearance in Arsenal's 2021-22 opener against Brentford as a second-half substitute.
#22 Bukayo Saka — £30,000/Week
Arsenal's player of the year 2020/21 — Bukayo Saka is also one of their top guns this season. The Gunners number 7 is dangerous when placed alongside captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on the left.
It is highly expected of this England international to come up big to save the club from its miseries.
#21 Aaron Ramsdale — £35,000/Week
Arsenal's second-choice goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, who came from Sheffield United this summer, pockets a salary of £35,000/Week.
His heroics with AFC Bournemouth and Sheffield United made Arteta entrust the 23-year-old with the responsibility to play Bernd Leno's second fiddle.
#20 Rob Holding — £40,000/Week
Rob Holding has been a part of Arsenal's squad since 2016. He was handed debut due to the absence of the club's center-backs Per Mertesacker and Gabriel Paulista.
Having played two of Arsenal's three games so far in this season, Rob Holding earns £40,000/Week.
#19 Eddie Nketiah — £45,000/Week
Unfortunately, Eddie Nketiah is nothing but an out-of-favor player at Arsenal. Even though the London-born striker was set to move away from the Gunners to join Crystal Palace, the deal could reach nowhere.
Edward Nketiah remains on Arsenal's payroll and earns £45,000/week in terms of salary.
#18 Gabriel Magalhães — £50,000/Week
Gabriel Magalhães who showed his prowess in Ligue 1 arrived in England to further push his career upwards. Having regularly taken the club's center-back role the previous season, he made 32 appearances in all competitions. But recently, the Brazilian seems to have fallen out of favor this term.
Magalhães is yet to be featured in the team list this term.
#17 Albert Sambi Lokonga — £50,000/Week
Arsenal, who have gone all guns blazing in signing young talent from across Europe this summer transfer window, also brought Albert Sambi Lokonga from Anderlecht.
The newly signed midfielder has made two appearances for the Gunners so far this season.
#16 Calum Chambers — £50,000/Week
The 26-year-old who has been a part of Arsenal's squad since 2016 is one of the club's most experienced players right now.
The versatile defender, after spending loan-spells at Middlesbrough and Fulham through 2016-17 and 2018 & 2019 respectively, has cemented his place in the last line of Arsenal's defense.
#15 Mohamed Elneny — £52,500/Week
The Egyptian international, who has featured for 132 games in Arsenal's shirt, pockets a handsome salary of £52,500/Week.
A proven talent with his former club Basel and national side Egypt, Mohamed Elneny is dangerous alongside his partner Thomas Partey in the midfield region.
#14 Ainsley Maitland-Niles — £52,500/Week
A product of Arsenal's youth setup, Ainsley Maitland-Niles ascended his way up from the club's U18 & U21 team to sign a professional contract in 2014.
He is the second youngest Arsenal player to have featured in the UEFA Champions League. He is yet to find a regular start with the club since his return from West Brom.
#13 Cédric Soares — £75,000/Week
After being impressive during his loan-stint at the Emirates in January 2020, Cédric Soares sealed a permanent move to Arsenal. The 30-year-old brings a lot of experience to the young Arsenal side and is one of the most respected players in Arsenal's dressing room.
He has been handy each time Arteta faced injury woes.
#12 Pablo Marí — £85,000/Week
Another loanee turned player — Pablo Marí, enters his second season with the Gunners. After being on the club's radar for a lengthy period, a move initiated by the club saw the Spaniard arrive in London in January 2020.
Despite suffering a major ankle injury during his early days at the club, he remains a highly appreciated player within Arsenal's legion.
#11 Gabriel Martinelli — £90,000/Week
The 20-year-old forward from Brazil has got into his manager's good books in his first season itself.
His skillset also earned him plaudits from Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp, who labeled the Brazilian the 'talent of the century'.
In return for his service to the club, he earns £90,000/Week.
#10 Sead Kolašinac — £100,000/Week
Arsenal's experienced full-back Sead Kolašinac is the first to join the 100,000 club. An important player in the Gunners' crucial fixtures, Kolašinac earned the Arsenal player of the month award in his first month with the club.
After being sent on loan in January 2021 to Schalke 04, Arteta has required his man to be back in service at the Emirates.
#9 Bernd Leno — £100,000/Week
Being signed as a potential replacement for Petr Čech, Bernd Leno did justice to the expectations bestowed upon him.
The former Leverkusen star has spent 100 games between the sticks for the Gunners. Though the arrival of Aaron Ramsdale threatens his future at the club, as of now, Leno dons the gloves for Arsenal in every game.
#8 Granit Xhaka — £100,000/Week
The Swiss international's stint with Arsenal has been a topsy-turvy one. He has had his good and bad days at London however, Xhaka maintains his reputation of being a dependable player at the club.
The 28-year-old almost joined Jose Mourinho at Roma this summer. But, he is still a Gunner and earns £100,000/Week with the club.
#7 Kieran Tierney — £110,000/Week
Arsenal defender Kieran Tierney missed out on the early stages of his debut season with Arsenal due to health concerns.
However, he managed to grab everyone's attention by displaying a constant level of fine performances. Earning multiple player of the month awards in the process, the Scottish international recently signed a long-term deal with the club.
#6 Martin Ødegaard — £120,000/Week
Making headlines after being signed by Real Madrid at the tender of 16, Ødegaard went on to train with the first team and the Zinedine Zidane managed Real Madrid Castilla team.
He moved to Vitesse and then to Real Sociedad in search of more playing minutes before eventually arriving at Arsenal as a loanee. On 20th August 2021, Arsenal announced the Swedish international as their permanent player.
#5 Ben White — £120,000/Week
Arsenal's third-most expensive signing of all time Ben White joined the club at a hefty fee of £50 million.
Placed at the center of Arsenal's defense, his start with the Londoners didn't go as expected. However, despite his club's poor start, Ben White maintains his reputation for being a promising talent.
#4 Nicolas Pépé — £140,000/Week
Arsenal's club-record signing, involving a fee of €79 million, saw the Nigerian international Nicolas Pépé join Arsenal in 2019.
Even though he couldn't live up to the price tag imminently, the 26-year-old forward managed to net 10 times off 29 games in the last season.
#3 Alexandre Lacazette — £182,063/Week
Once a Golden Boot winner with Lyon to presently being a non-firing gun at Arsenal, Lacazette's career didn't take off as he had expected.
He was voted Arsenal's player of the season by fans in 2019. A favorite during Wenger's stint was dropped to the bench by Unai Emery. Even though he faces massive competition from the youngsters, Alexandre Lacazette is one of the club's most paid players.
#2 Thomas Partey — £200,000/Week
Former Atletico Madrid star — Thomas Partey, is one of only two Arsenal players to be earning £200,000/week or above.
The 28-year-old from Ghana was excited to join Arsenal and had expressed his desire to restore the club's lost glory. However, his tenure in London has been constantly haunted by injury-woes.
#1 Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang — £250,000/Week
The club's captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is also their highest earning player. Aubameyang, who hit a purple patch with Dortmund, signed for Arsenal with the intention of stepping up his career.
However, as things stand, the Gabon player is left with captaining a shambled and inexperienced squad. Nevertheless, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is undoubtedly the most trusted player at Arsenal.