No Premier League club is safe from the riches on offer in the Saudi Pro League, including Newcastle who are owned by the same Saudi Public Investment Fund that are bankrolling the biggest four teams in the emerging Middle Eastern league.
Anyone who believed that the Saudi player grab was just a Chinese Super League MK II will surely already see that they have been sorely mistaken.
The transfer fees being paid as well as the money on offer to the players themselves is making a move to the league more and more difficult for everyone to turn down.
Though there’s a general acceptance that the Premier League is the best in the world and the top five leagues in Europe are beyond compare, a rethink may well be necessary over the next few years.
Once players in their prime rather than those over 30 start moving to Saudi in their droves, it would be fair to suggest at that point that the footballing landscape is changing beyond what was expected when Cristiano Ronaldo became the first big name to move.
According to L’Equipe, Newcastle’s exciting 26-year-old winger, Allan Saint-Maximin, could be heading to Al Ahli this summer.
The outlet report that the Saudi giants have offered him an astonishing €12m per year in salary, which would virtually quadruple his current £3.6m Newcastle wages (via Capology).
The Daily Mail also note that the Magpies pursuit of Leicester City’s Harvey Barnes, if successful, would see the Frenchman sidelined, and to that end it would surely be in everyone’s best interests, Saint-Maximin included, if he accepted Al Ahli’s offer.