Though Dominik Szoboszlai joins Liverpool as one of the club’s most expensive signings ever, he will not be among the top earners just yet.
With Szoboszlai arriving from RB Leipzig in a deal worth around £60 million, only Darwin Nunez (£85m), Virgil van Dijk (£75m) and Alisson (£65m) cost more to sign.
It is a signal of the club’s faith in the 22-year-old midfielder, particularly as negotiations with the Bundesliga club ended up with a single payment to meet his release clause.
But while Liverpool’s new No. 8 is a unique signing in that respect, he still settles into their long-standing wage policy.
Perhaps bar Thiago – who is one of the club’s highest earners following his move from Bayern Munich in 2020 – every signing agrees a lower wage on the understanding that their form and development would be rewarded.
According to the Telegraph‘s Chris Bascombe, Szoboszlai will be earning less than £125,000 a week – which is in the mid-range of Liverpool salaries.
This comes in a comparison with previous target Mason Mount, who left Liverpool disappointed in their pursuit as he made it clear he favours Man United.
Bascombe explains that Mount has agreed a £250,000-a-week contract with United, with Szoboszlai negotiating “less than half” of that.
It is still a handsome wage, of course, but despite their £60 million outlay the club were not willing to sign players whose demands would break their existing structure.
Mohamed Salah is comfortably Liverpool’s highest earner on £350,000 per week, but it is believed that Virgil van Dijk and Thiago are the only other players earning £200,000 a week or more.
Those elsewhere in the squad can then use that as an incentive to perform, though the majority if not all of their contracts will already include various performance-related bonuses.
Szoboszlai was also tracked by Newcastle this summer, but the emergence of Liverpool in the running last week made it a no brainer for the Hungarian.
Fan Comments