Arsenal is planning to make Vinicius Jr the highest-paid player in the club’s history to convince the Brazilian star to leave Real Madrid.
Arsenal is harboring ambitions to create the biggest blockbuster of the summer transfer window by putting Vinicius Jr at the top of their target list. However, to turn the deal into reality, the Emirates Stadium side will have to agree to break all wage bill limits.
According to The Sun, Vinicius still has a contract with Real Madrid until 2027 and is currently earning a salary of around £400,000 per week. Notably, the Brazilian forward has yet to reach an extension agreement with the Spanish Royal club, opening up hope for Arsenal.
Even so, the challenge facing the “Gunners” is by no means small. New head coach Jose Mourinho appears to have asked Real Madrid to maintain the core framework consisting of Vinicius, Kylian Mbappe, and Jude Bellingham. This makes negotiation prospects far more difficult.
If they want to persuade Vinicius, Arsenal is virtually forced to match or even surpass the 26-year-old’s current earnings. This would be the highest salary in Arsenal’s history, far exceeding the new contract of Bukayo Saka, who currently receives around £365,000 per week.
Handing out a massive wage package also means Arsenal must alter the wage policy that manager Mikel Arteta has pursued for many years. When taking over the team in 2019, the Spanish strategist ruthlessly got rid of overly high-earning contracts like Mesut Ozil or Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Nevertheless, Arteta still wants to reinforce the attack amidst rumors that both Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli could leave right after Leandro Trossard. Aside from Vinicius, Arsenal is also closely monitoring PSG’s Bradley Barcola, but the player is valued at up to £140 million. Previously, the London team also pulled out of the race for Morgan Rogers after refusing to accept the £117 million fee demanded by Aston Villa.
