Gabriel Martinelli has completed a £60m move from Arsenal to Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal, becoming the Gunners’ most expensive sale.
The transfer is worth a fixed fee and includes a sell-on clause. It surpasses the previous Arsenal record, set when Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain joined Liverpool for £40m in the summer of 2017.
Martinelli has signed a four-year contract with Al-Hilal and will wear the number seven shirt.
The Brazil forward’s departure follows the sale of fellow left-sided attacker Leandro Trossard to Besiktas. Arsenal have also signed Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge, but the exits of Martinelli and Trossard leave the club with fewer established options on the left side of their attack.
The pair scored 19 goals between them for Arsenal last year, increasing the significance of their departures as the club prepare for the new campaign.
Eberechi Eze is expected to take on a more prominent role as a left-sided forward this season. Arsenal also believe Noni Madueke and Bukayo Saka are capable of operating in that position.
Martinelli, 25, made almost 300 appearances for Arsenal during a seven-season spell at the club. However, he was not included in the squad for Arsenal’s Community Shield victory over Manchester City or their subsequent Premier League wins against Coventry and Aston Villa.
His omission prompted criticism from former Arsenal striker Ian Wright, who said the way Martinelli had been treated left him feeling “uncomfortable”. Wright also argued that the player deserved “more respect”.
Martinelli joined Arsenal and went on to become a regular member of their first-team squad across seven seasons before his move to Al-Hilal. The transfer gives him the chance to continue his career in the Saudi Pro League, while Arsenal lose another attacking option following Trossard’s move to Besiktas.
The timing of the deal also comes after the Premier League transfer window closed on Tuesday. Clubs in the Saudi Pro League, however, still have until Sunday to complete their business.
Martinelli’s switch is therefore the latest major move involving Arsenal after the English window has shut, and it establishes a new record for the highest fee received by the north London club for a player. The fixed £60m fee takes the deal beyond the amount Arsenal received for Oxlade-Chamberlain’s 2017 transfer to Liverpool, with the sell-on clause providing an additional long-term element to the agreement.
