Martinelli’s €70m Exit Blows Arsenal’s Transfer Record Apart
Gabriel Martinelli becomes Arsenal’s biggest-ever sale, with Al Hilal splashing around €70million for the Brazilian winger.
The 25-year-old signed a four-year contract with the Saudi Pro League side, bringing an end to seven years in North London. Martinelli joined Arsenal from Ituano in 2019 and leaves having scored 62 goals in 278 appearances.
If completed at the reported figure, his transfer comfortably eclipses Arsenal’s previous record departures. But how did the other players fare after leaving the Gunners?
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - €38m
Liverpool signed Oxlade-Chamberlain from Arsenal in 2017 and, despite persistent injury problems, the midfielder collected some serious silverware at Anfield.
He made 146 appearances and scored 18 goals for Liverpool, helping Jurgen Klopp’s side win the Premier League, Champions League and four other major trophies. He later joined Besiktas, winning the Turkish Cup before leaving in 2025.
Nicolas Anelka - €35m
Arsenal’s deal for Anelka remains one of the club’s great pieces of transfer business.
Signed from Paris Saint-Germain for around £500,000, the striker was sold to Real Madrid in 1999. His spell in Spain lasted just one season, but he scored crucial goals against Bayern Munich on the way to winning the Champions League.
Anelka subsequently represented PSG, Manchester City, Bolton and Chelsea among several others during a long career.
Alexis Sanchez - €34m valuation
Sanchez’s move to Manchester United in January 2018 was actually a swap deal involving Henrikh Mkhitaryan, rather than a straightforward €34m cash transfer.
It proved a disappointing move for the Chilean. After scoring 80 times in 166 Arsenal appearances, Sanchez struggled to reproduce anything close to that form at Old Trafford before eventually joining Inter Milan. The less said about his time in Manchester, the better.
