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The Highest Paid Premier League Players

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4 weeks ago

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One of the highest paid Premier League players - David De Gea

Who is the highest paid Premier League player?

 

There has been a lot of talk about the money in the Premier League in the last few days. Newcastle United’s recent takeover has seen them become the richest club in the Premier League by some margin. Fans are already beginning to speculate what this will mean for the future of the club and which players they may offer big contracts to. Elsewhere, Mohamed Salah has made headlines as he has reportedly asked Liverpool for £380,000 a week for him to sign a new contract. This would make him one of the highest paid Premier League players if Liverpool agree.

The Premier League is coming off the back of a summer full of big money deals which has shaken up the list of the biggest earners. The amount of players earning extreme wages only looks set to grow over the coming seasons as well. Premier League wage bills are some of the highest in the world and that is largely down to some individuals on huge wages from their clubs. In this article we take a look at the ten highest paid Premier League players this season and debate if they have justified their wages (Stats from Spotrac).

 

10. Paul Pogba

Starting off the top ten is Paul Pogba. Pogba currently earns £290,000 a week on his current contract. This gives him an annual salary of £15.08m. Since he returned to Manchester United in August 2016 he has made 208 appearances for the club scoring 38 goals and providing 49 assists. His second spell at United has seen him win the EFL Cup and the Europa League. He also won the 2018 World Cup with France. As for individual awards he won Europa League Player of the Season in 2016/17 and was named in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year in 2018/19.

Whether Pogba has justified his price tag (and wages) is a topic that is often debated. By no means are his stats bad for a centre midfielder but he has not lived up to the standards he set at Juventus. There is no doubt that on his day Paul Pogba is one of the best midfielders in the world but his issue has always been his consistency. He is looking back to his best this season with 7 assists in his opening 7 appearances. Overall, Pogba’s performances in what was a poor Manchester United team in recent years show the level of quality he has. Players of this quality are deserving of their high wages.

 

9. N’Golo Kante

N’Golo Kante also earns £290,000 a week on his current contract. This matches Pogba’s annual salary of £15.08m. Since he signed for Chelsea in August 2016 he has made 224 appearances for the club scoring 12 goals and providing 10 assists. While at the Blues he has won the Premier League, the FA Cup, the Champions League, the Europa League and the UEFA Super Cup. He also won the 2018 World Cup with France. On top of this he has won Premier League Player of the Season, PFA Player of the Year and UEFA Midfielder of the Year to name a few.

Kante has certainly justified his wages. He is one of the best defensive midfielders in football history and doesn’t look like dropping off anytime soon. He has won too many individual honours to be listed in this article. Although he struggled with injuries last season he was still Man of the Match in the Champions League Final and is in strong contention to win the Ballon d’Or. You could even argue that Kante deserves higher wages for the level he has been consistently playing at for the last five years.

 

8. Raheem Sterling

The first of three Manchester City players in the top ten is Raheem Sterling. Sterling currently earns £300,000 a week on his current contract. This gives him an annual salary of £15.6m. Sterling signed a new contract with City in 2018 to increase his wages to the current number. Since joining City in July 2015 Sterling has made 302 appearances for the club. In this time he has scored 115 goals and provided 88 assists. His years at City have provided him with a packed trophy cabinet as well. Sterling has won three Premier Leagues, five EFL Cups, two Community Shields and one FA Cup.

Sterling got off to a slow start to his City career but ever since Pep Guardiola took over his numbers have been incredible. His stats up to 2018 certainly justified his pay rise and since then he has gone from strength to strength. Sterling is almost always near the top of the scoring charts in the Premier League despite not being a striker. He had a quiet end to last season but reminded everyone of his quality during this summer’s European Championships. Sterling is one of the best wingers in the Premier League and is only three goals away from reaching 100 league goals. A player that can score 100 Premier League goals at the age of 26 earns their wages.

 

7. Jack Grealish

The first of five summer signings to feature in the top ten is Jack Grealish. Like his teammate Sterling, Grealish earns £300,000 a week on his current contract. Therefore, he also has an annual salary of £15.6m. Grealish became the most expensive signing in Premier League history when he joined City from Aston Villa in the summer. He has made a solid start to his City career. He has made 10 appearances so far this season scoring two goals and providing two assists. Grealish has started every game in the Premier League and Champions League for Manchester City this season which is impressive in a Pep Guardiola side.

Keeping the likes of Sterling and Riyad Mahrez out of the team every week shows his talent. Grealish is slowly on his way to matching his form at Villa in which case he will certainly justify his wages. He may need a full season to adapt to City’s play-style but so did Sterling and look how far he’s come. Grealish seems to be following a similar path to Sterling albeit a few years later in his development. If he carries on down this path he is well on his way to being one of the best in the league.

 

6. Romelu Lukaku

The other Chelsea player in the top ten is Romelu Lukaku. Lukaku earns £325,000 a week on his current contract. This gives him an annual salary of £16.9m. Lukaku’s return to Chelsea would have been the most expensive signing in Premier League history had it not been for the Grealish deal a few weeks before. Lukaku has made nine appearances for Chelsea this season scoring four goals. He has made a strong start to his second spell at Stamford Bridge. He has become the main focal point in Chelsea’s attack as they look to mount a title charge.

Although he has only been back at Chelsea a few months he certainly justifies his wages. Lukaku already has 116 Premier League goals to his name. He is the fifth youngest player to reach a century in the Premier League doing so at just 24 years old. He is coming off the back of two outstanding years in Serie A with Inter Milan where he led them to their first Serie A title since 2010. Lukaku also won Europa League Player of the Year and Serie A MVP last season. Lukaku is undoubtedly one of the best strikers in the world and deserves every penny of his wages.

 

5. Raphael Varane

The first player in the top five and the only defender on the list is Raphael Varane. Varane earns £340,000 a week on his current contract. This earns him an annual salary of £17.68m. Varane joined Manchester United for £36m in the summer after 10 years at Real Madrid. Varane looks set to strengthen the United defense as they try to end their trophy drought this season. He has made seven appearances this season and has already provided an assist.

Varane has been one of the best centre halves in the world for many years. His trophy cabinet is full to the brim thanks to a decade in Madrid. Varane has won four Champions Leagues, three La Ligas, three Spanish Super Cups, four Club World Cups, three UEFA Super Cups and a Copa Del Rey. He was also part of the 2018 World Cup winning France squad. He was named in the FIFPro World XI and the UEFA Team of the Year in 2018. All this at just 28 years old. Varane is already one of the best and he is now in his prime years as a player. He is set to be key to any success United have in the next few years and definitely deserves his wages.

 

4. Jadon Sancho

Jadon Sancho earns £350,000 a week on his current contract. This gives him an annual salary of £18.2m. Sancho finally joined United this summer after a year of waiting in a deal worth £76.5m. He is struggling for game time this season. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is preferring to keep Sancho on the bench in most games as he adapts to life at United. He is yet to register a goal or an assist in his nine United appearances so far this season.

While Sancho is yet to justify his wages at United this season he certainly will do just that if he can return to his Borussia Dortmund form. He made 137 appearances for Dortmund scoring 50 goals and providing 64 assists. Incredible numbers for someone so young. Sancho won the DFB Pokal and the German Super Cup during his time in Germany. Being one of the highest paid Premier League players at just 21 is a lot of pressure to try to live up to. He just needs some more time to cement a starting position then his performances will get back to his usual level. Like Varane, he is likely to be key to any United success in the next few years.

 

3. David De Gea

The first player in the top three and the only goalkeeper in the list is David De Gea. De Gea earns £375,000 a week on his current contract. This gives him an annual salary of £19.5m. De Gea has made 450 appearances for United since signing from Atletico Madrid in 2011. He has won the Premier League, the FA Cup, the EFL Cup, the Europa League and three Community Shields in his time at Old Trafford. He signed a new contract with United in 2019 which saw his wages jump from £200,000 a week to his current deal making him one of the highest paid Premier League players.

David De Gea has certainly justified his wages and deserved his significant pay rise. De Gea has been the most consistent player at United over the last five or so years. He won the Golden Glove in 2017/18, has won Man United Player of the Year four times and has been in the PFA Team of the Year five times. De Gea is one of the greatest goalkeepers in Premier League history and has won United so many points with his performances over the years. There is debate if a goalkeeper should be one of the highest earners in the Premier League but for someone as crucial as David De Gea is it fair. He seems to be back to his best and looks set for another important season.

 

2. Kevin De Bruyne

Kevin De Bruyne earns a whopping £400,000 a week on his current contract. This gives him an annual salary of £20.8m. De Bruyne has made 269 appearances for City scoring 69 goals and providing 107 assists. Since he signed for City in 2015 he has won three Premier Leagues, five EFL Cups, two Community Shields and the FA Cup. De Bruyne signed a contract extension with City in April of this year which saw him secure an extra £100,000 a week. At time of signing the contract De Bruyne was the biggest earner in the Premier League.

De Bruyne is arguably the best player in the Premier League so it makes sense that he has some of the highest wages. He has been outstanding to watch in his six years at City and he has won too many individual honours to list. He has won PFA Player of the Year in the last two seasons despite struggling with injuries. De Bruyne shares the record for most assists in a Premier League season with Thierry Henry. De Bruyne is one of the greatest players to ever play in the Premier League and consistently performs at the top level every season. There is no debate as to whether De Bruyne has earned his wages at City and he deserved his pay rise this year.

 

The highest paid Premier League player in 2021

1. Cristiano Ronaldo

The fifth and final United player in the list and the highest paid player in the Premier League is Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo earns a staggering £510,000 a week on his current contract. This gives him an annual salary of £26.52m. Ronaldo sensationally returned to Manchester United in the summer 12 years after leaving for Real Madrid. He has made six appearances for United this season scoring 5 goals. Ronaldo has had a sensational start to his second spell at United silencing those who said he was too old to reach the standards of some of the other big players in the league.

He is arguably the greatest player in the history of football so of course he deserves to be the highest earner in the Premier League. Ronaldo has been incredible at every club he has played at and his ability to reach unbelievable numbers season after to season is mesmerising. He has won five Ballon d’Ors which is only bested by Lionel Messi’s six. Ronaldo has already won Premier League Player of the Month for September in his first month back in England. Ronaldo undoubtedly deserves to top the list of the highest paid Premier League players.

 

We hoped you enjoyed the article “The Highest Paid Premier League Players.” Which of these players do you think have justified their wages? Let us know!

 

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Rob is currently doing a bachelor's degree in sports journalism at Staffordshire University. He is diehard football fan and supports Liverpool. He aspires to be a leading sports journalist/broadcaster in the future.

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