2023/24 Major Transfers and Rumours

The Saudi Pro League is dominating the 2023 summer transfer window with rumours that big-name stars will flock to Saudi Arabia. Cristiano Ronaldo started the trend, of course, taking an enormous contract at the start of the year to play for Al-Nassr.

Things are really starting to ramp up, however, and Football FanCast takes you through the latest news and rumours…

Why are players moving to the Saudi Pro League?

So why has there been a sudden rise in transfer activity in this part of the world? Essentially, it comes down to investment from the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, or PIF. You’ll have heard a lot about it when PIF purchased Newcastle United, of course.

Well, the same fund has purchased majority stakes in Al-Hilal, Al-Nassr, Al-Ahli and Al-Ittihad. The former two are the biggest clubs in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. The latter two are the biggest in Jeddah, the country’s second-largest city. All four now have incredible wealth behind them and are looking to make waves.

Find the latest results and info from the Saudi Pro League HERE…

A steady stream of players have followed in Ronaldo’s footsteps by ditching European football for a go at the Saudi Pro League. And as the following list of players shows, there seems to be no sign of it stopping following the official start of the transfer window.

So who has decided to make the move so far? Here’s a rundown of the high-profile transfers and the latest moves from the Saudi clubs:

Aymeric Laporte – Manchester City to Al Nassr

Manchester City have officially sold Aymeric Laporte to Al Nassr. The deal went through on Thursday, costing the Saudi side around £23m (per BBC).

The Spanish defender is still only 29 and has been a star for City since arriving back in 2018. Laporte’s appearance numbers dropped off last season, however, and new signing Josko Gvardiol makes it even hard for him to get back in the side.

And so the defender becomes the latest to accept a move to the Middle East. Al Nassr are getting a fantastic player here – and one who could potentially deliver at the top level for a good few years.

Aleksandar Mitrovic – Fulham to Al-Hilal

This one took a little time to go through but Al-Hilal have their man. Fulham were completely against the idea of selling the Serbian earlier in the window but a raised bid – and the player’s desire to depart – changed things.

The BBC report that Fulham will receive around £50m for Mitrovic. That’s a club-record sale and too much to pass up, it seems. They’ll now look to replace their star man while he prepares to lineup with Neymar.

Yassine Bounou – Sevilla to Al-Hilal

Bounou has been one of the best goalkeepers in Europe over the last few years. Al-Hilal continued their recent spending spree to snap him up, as a result, and it’s quite the coup.

Both Real Madrid and Bayern Munich were linked as they try to replace Thibaut Courtois and Manuel Neuer, respectively. Instead, Bounou head to Saudi Arabia and joins an incredibly impressive-looking Al-Hilal squad.

Merih Demiral – Atalanta to Al-Ahli

Demiral is, once again, a player linked with some several high-profile moves this summer. It’s Al-Ahli who snap him up, though, and they’re getting a real accomplished defender in the process.

The reported £17m fee feels like a steal, too, especially to set up an instant partnership with former AS Roma defender Roger Ibanez.

What are the latest Saudi Pro League rumours?

There are a lot of rumours about potential arrivals in Saudi Arabia right now. Here’s an attempt to round them all up – but it feels impossible to grab them all. You may well find yourself linked in a national newspaper by the end of the week.

Don’t be surprised if the following players take the plunge…

Mohamed Salah – Liverpool to Al-Ittihad

Unquestionably the biggest transfer story of the week and, should a deal go through, possibly the biggest move of the summer. Al-Ittihad have reported agreed terms with Mohamed Salah (beIN sports) and will try to negotiate a fee with Liverpool.

But all signs are that the Reds won’t entertain a sale. The Guardian say Liverpool are ‘insisting’ that there’s no chance of this one going through and, to be fair, that’s understandable. There’s no obvious replacement for Salah, especially this late in the window and that surely makes any sale completely pointless for the club.

Then again, half of the players moving to Saudi Arabia this summer have been shocks. What’s one more?

Gabri Veiga – Celta Vigo to Al-Ahli

In some ways, this is the most shocking one of the lot. Gabri Veiga is one of the best up-and-coming midfielders in Europe and was heavily linked with Napoli this summer. In fact, the Italian champions reportedly agreed a fee and had a medical booked – only for a sudden change in plans.

That change appears to have been driven by Al-Ahli who, according to Fabrizio Romano, are now on the brink of signing the 20-year-old Veiga. Seeing a top talent like this choose the Saudi Pro League has been unheard of up to now – this is a genuine shock.

So much so that Real Madrid’s Toni Kroos actually labeled Veiga’s decision ’embarrassing’.

Eric Dier – Tottenham to Al-Nassr

90min report that Al-Nassr want to sign Eric Dier this summer. It’s one that makes sense from a Spurs point of view, given Dier appears surplus to requirements this season.

But there’s no sense that this one is particularly close, nor are rumours gathering pace as they’ve typically done this season. We wouldn’t hold our breath on this one, then, though it’s worth keeping an eye on towards the end of the window.

Demarai Gray – Everton to Al Shabab

Everton have an agreement in place with Al Shabab for Damarai Gray. That’s according to Fabrizio Romano, who makes it clear that this deal is only between the two clubs.

Gray himself is yet to agree on anything. He’ll enter contract talks with the Saudi side now – and if he likes what he sees, this one could move quite quickly. If the forward wants the move, it’s his.

Rodrigo de Paul – Atletico Madrid to Al-Ahli

Fabrizio Romano claims talks between Atletico and Al-Ahli are moving forward on Rodrigo de Paul. An offer of around £28m has gone in, as well as a contract for De Paul.

But it’s worth mentioning that Marca don’t believe this will happen. They say Atletico want to keep him and that it would take a bid worth three times that in order for a deal to happen. On top of that, De Paul himself isn’t keen on the move and would prefer to stay.

Alisson Becker – Liverpool to Al-Nassr

Jordan Henderson, Fabinho and Roberto Firmino all left Liverpool for Saudi Arabia this summer. Sadio Mané is now there, too. Al-Nassr are hoping Alisson is the latest Red to make the move – but it doesn’t seem likely.

The Mirror reports on Al-Nassr’s interest, but Jurgen Klopp isn’t entertaining the idea. He doesn’t want to lose his goalkeeper with the season already underway, so all offers will be rejected.

Let’s see if Al-Nassr can find an offer that Liverpool simply can’t refuse.

Gabriel – Arsenal to Unknown

The Mirror reports that Arsenal’s Gabriel is of interest to clubs in Saudi Arabia after being left out of the Gunners’ squad for their opening-day win over Nottingham Forest. The Brazilian would need to be immediately replaced, however.

In fact, an injury to Jurrien Timber may have ruled this one out already. Arsenal must consider entering the market for a defender as it is – moving for two feels a little out of the question. There’s interest, then, but it’s not an easy one to make happen.

Thiago – Liverpool to Al-Ahli

L’Équipe claims that Thiago has a new offer on the table from Al-Ahli as they try to be the latest Saudi side to tempt a midfielder away from Liverpool. They’re just all up for grabs, aren’t they?

Both Fabinho and Jordan Henderson opted to jump ship, but we get the sense Thiago won’t. He’s reportedly rejected one offer from Saudi Arabia already this summer and it doesn’t appear that this one will tempt him, either. Liverpool would get around £10m if it went through – but don’t hold your breath.

Then again, few would have seen Henderson and Fabinho’s exits coming.

Willian – Fulham to Al-Shabab

What a bizarre one this is. Willian had plenty of options this summer as his Fulham contract ended – but he decided to remain with the Cottagers. He signed a new deal and was all set to continue there.

That was two weeks ago. Now he’s got an offer from Al-Shabab and wants Fulham to accept. Fabrizio Romano even claims personal terms have been agreed.

Marcos Llorente – Atletico Madrid to Al-Ahli

A rare one here as a player in the prime of his career could make the move out to the Middle East. Llorente is a notable name in European football – and a player who could play for just about anyone. But there’s increasing talk that he’s on his way to Al-Ahli.

Journalist Nabil Djellit claims the Saudi side are increasingly confident about completing a deal this summer.

Kylian Mbappé – Paris Saint-Germain to Al-Hilal

The biggest transfer story of the summer – and it might be over already. PSG want to sell Kylian Mbappé this summer, with his contract expiring next year. Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal then approached them with a world-record offer of around £240m.

The thing is, though, Mbappé seemingly wants to sign for Real Madrid in 2024. That makes the offer from Al-Hilal look ridiculous if it was for just one year of football, right? Especially if they were to then offer him a minimum of £200m in wages for that one year, with up to £700m depending on image rights.

And yet, that’s what they’ve done. One year, up to £1bn in cost. Mbappé, though, isn’t interested and, per The Guardian, has rejected the offer without even holding talks. This isn’t about money, it seems, but we’ll just have to see what happens next.

Thomas Partey – Arsenal to Unknown

Fabrizio Romano understands there is still interest from Saudi Arabia in Partey – but no bid has been enough to trigger a sale. In fact, Romano claims there were approaches from Saudi clubs just days ago.

As long as those approaches fall short of the £40m valuation by Arsenal, though, Partey isn’t going anywhere soon. Mikel Arteta is happy to have him around as things stand, so we’ll wait and see.

Luis Díaz – Liverpool to Al-Hilal

Portuguese outlet Record claims that there’s a £40m bid on the table for Liverpool to consider. Of course, it’s highly unlikely that the Reds accept it – Díaz arrived for around that fee 18 months ago and has been incredible ever since.

This would truly be the most shocking transfer of the lot, so we wouldn’t recommend you hold your breath.

Saúl – Atletico Madrid to Al-Nassr

Saúl appears set to leave Atletico Madrid permanently this summer and Al-Nassr want him at their club. Romano, once again, understands this one is close. The 28-year-old, briefly of – you guessed it – Chelsea, only made 11 La Liga starts last term so could be looking to move for more regular game time, and Al-Nassr may just offer him a way out.

Alvaro Morata – Atletico Madrid to Al-Hilal

This comes from the Daily Mail. It reports that Al-Hilal are ready to sign Alvaro Morata and would offer Atletico around £20m to get it done. As for the player, the Spanish striker would earn £40m per year if he made the move to the Middle East.

Morata has changed clubs frequently over the course of his career, winning just about everything he possibly can at club level. He’s also a former Chelsea player, and we know how much Saudi Arabian clubs seem to love that.

The Spaniard is widely expected to move on this summer, but there weren’t previously any suggestions of a move to Saudi Arabia. As we’re learning this summer, though, every big-name player appears to be a target.