Former Arsenal star Granit Xhaka has now reached a verbal agreement to join Saudi Pro League side Neom SC.
After two seasons at Bayer Leverkusen, Granit Xhaka will join former Arsenal teammate Alexandre Lacazette at the newly-promoted Saudi side, who have rich ambitions.
Since leaving Arsenal in 2023, Xhaka has made 99 appearances for Bayer Leverkusen, scoring six goals and providing nine assists.
But the 32-year-old has seemingly now decided that it’s time for a new challenge, and he’ll soon be facing the likes of Ivan Toney in Saudi Arabia if a deal is agreed.
Neom have already recruited Lacazette for next season as mentioned, and they have also signed up former Premier League star Said Benrahma too.
Granit Xhaka set to join former Arsenal teammate Alexandre Lacazette in Saudi Arabia
That being said, German journalist Florian Plettenberg has just shared word on X regarding the huge salary Xhaka will now earn if he joins Neom.
According to Plettenberg, Xhaka will earn around €10m per year at Neom, which is around €192k-a-week.
That’s a sizable wage hike for the 32-year-old, considering Capology report that Xhaka is currently earning €80k-a-week at Leverkusen.
And in terms of how that compares to Xhaka’s final wage at Arsenal in 2023, the Switzerland international was earning €139k-a-week according to the same source.
Granit Xhaka Arsenal Mikel Arteta
Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images
READ MORE: Viktor Gyokeres deserves Thierry Henry’s iconic number 14 shirt after what he’s just done to stun Arsenal
Sharing more details, Plettenberg wrote: “Granit Xhaka has reached a verbal agreement in principle with Neom SC. The 32 y/o can earn €10m net per year.
“Fenerbahce have also entered the race in case a move to the Saudi Pro League newcomers does not materialise.
“Neom SC have verbally informed Bayer 04 Leverkusen that they want to sign Xhaka. A possible fee of around €6 million has been presented.
“No agreement between the clubs yet. New, and potentially decisive, talks are expected on Monday.”
🚨🇸🇦 EXCL DETAILS | Granit #Xhaka has reached a verbal agreement in principle with Neom SC. The 32 y/o can earn €10m net per year.
⚠️ Fenerbahce have also entered the race in case a move to the Saudi Pro League newcomers does not materialise.
Neom SC have verbally informed… pic.twitter.com/f77Trdia8r
— Florian Plettenberg (@Plettigoal) July 13, 2025
View Tweet
Declan Rice has finally solved Arsenal’s Granit Xhaka conundrum
For a good while after his departure, a lot of Arsenal fans felt as if there was a Xhaka-sized hole left in Mikel Arteta’s midfield.
Kai Havertz was originally signed to replace the Swiss international, but that’s an Arteta experiment that didn’t quite work out.
But in Havertz’s place, Declan Rice stood up and showed his worth in an advanced role, one he’s now made his own.
A compilation fit for our Player of the Season 🪄
Sit back, relax and enjoy every 24/25 Declan Rice goal and assist 🍿
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) June 28, 2025
View Tweet
And when you consider that Arteta also has Mikel Merino at his disposal as a left-sided number eight next season, things are looking pretty healthy.
Moreover, Arsenal have a youngster who could be the next Rice coming through the Hale End academy right now.
And although Xhaka is clearly available this summer, there’s very little clamour around the N5 faithful about a move back to the Emirates.