Highest-Paid Midfielders in Football
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic is the highest-paid midfielder tracked on Retained List, earning £416,566 per week at Al-Hilal. The full list of 200 tracked midfielders, sorted by weekly wage, is below.
Verified October 2026
| # | Player | Club | Age | Contract | Weekly Wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sergej Milinkovic-Savic | Al-Hilal | 31 | June 2028 | £416,566 |
| 2 | Jude Bellingham | Real Madrid | 23 | June 2029 | £400,577 |
| 3 | Jamal Musiala | Bayern Munich | 23 | June 2030 | £400,000 |
| 4 | Marcelo Brozovic | Free Agent | 33 | June 2026 | £385,000 |
| 5 | Florian Wirtz | Liverpool | 23 | June 2027 | £365,000 |
| 6 | Joshua Kimmich | Bayern Munich | 31 | June 2029 | £346,154 |
| 7 | Federico Valverde | Real Madrid | 28 | June 2029 | £346,154 |
| 8 | Kai Havertz | Arsenal | 27 | July 2028 | £331,000 |
| 9 | Rúben Neves | Al-Hilal | 29 | June 2029 | £300,000 |
| 10 | Aurélien Tchouaméni | Real Madrid | 26 | June 2028 | £288,462 |
| 11 | Bruno Guimarães | Arsenal | 28 | June 2030 | £250,000 |
| 12 | Mason Mount | Manchester United | 30 | June 2028 | £250,000 |
| 13 | Declan Rice | Arsenal | 27 | July 2028 | £250,000 |
| 14 | Eduardo Camavinga | Real Madrid | 23 | June 2029 | £240,385 |
| 15 | Martin Ødegaard | Arsenal | 27 | June 2028 | £240,000 |
| 16 | Bruno Fernandes | Manchester United | 32 | June 2028 | £240,000 |
| 17 | Dani Ceballos | Real Betis | 30 | June 2027 | £200,385 |
| 18 | Phil Foden | Manchester City | 26 | June 2030 | £200,000 |
| 19 | Ryan Gravenberch | Liverpool | 24 | June 2028 | £200,000 |
| 20 | Xavi Simons | Tottenham Hotspur | 23 | June 2030 | £195,000 |
| 21 | Bukayo Saka | Arsenal | 25 | June 2027 | £195,000 |
| 22 | Vitinha | Paris Saint-Germain | 26 | June 2029 | £173,077 |
| 23 | James Maddison | Tottenham Hotspur | 29 | June 2028 | £170,000 |
| 24 | Rodri | Barcelona | 30 | June 2027 | £160,000 |
| 25 | Alexis Mac Allister | Liverpool | 27 | July 2028 | £150,000 |
| 26 | Kalvin Phillips | Manchester City | 31 | June 2028 | £150,000 |
| 27 | Mateo Kovacic | Manchester City | 32 | June 2027 | £150,000 |
| 28 | Boubacar Kamara | Aston Villa | 26 | June 2027 | £150,000 |
| 29 | Martín Zubimendi | Arsenal | 27 | June 2030 | £150,000 |
| 30 | Moisés Caicedo | Chelsea | 24 | June 2031 | £150,000 |
| 31 | Edson Álvarez | West Ham United | 28 | August 2028 | £148,000 |
| 32 | Conor Gallagher | Tottenham Hotspur | 26 | June 2030 | £145,000 |
| 33 | Youri Tielemans | Manchester United | 29 | June 2031 | £144,444 |
| 34 | Eberechi Eze | Arsenal | 28 | June 2029 | £140,000 |
| 35 | Idrissa Gueye | Free Agent | 37 | June 2026 | £130,000 |
| 36 | Lucas Paquetá | West Ham United | 29 | June 2027 | £130,000 |
| 37 | Cole Palmer | Chelsea | 24 | June 2033 | £130,000 |
| 38 | Dominik Szoboszlai | Liverpool | 25 | June 2031 | £120,000 |
| 39 | Mikel Merino | Arsenal | 30 | June 2028 | £120,000 |
| 40 | Tijjani Reijnders | Free Agent | 28 | June 2030 | £120,000 |
| 41 | Sandro Tonali | Tottenham Hotspur | 26 | June 2032 | £120,000 |
| 42 | Matheus Nunes | Manchester City | 28 | June 2028 | £120,000 |
| 43 | John McGinn | Aston Villa | 31 | June 2028 | £120,000 |
| 44 | Manuel Locatelli | Juventus | 28 | June 2028 | £115,385 |
| 45 | Dejan Kulusevski | Tottenham Hotspur | 26 | June 2028 | £110,000 |
| 46 | João Palhinha | Fulham | 31 | June 2028 | £110,000 |
| 47 | Emile Smith Rowe | Fulham | 26 | June 2028 | £105,000 |
| 48 | Granit Xhaka | Sunderland | 34 | June 2027 | £100,000 |
| 49 | James Ward-Prowse | West Ham United | 31 | June 2027 | £100,000 |
| 50 | Alex Iwobi | Fulham | 30 | June 2028 | £100,000 |
| 51 | Leon Bailey | Aston Villa | 29 | June 2027 | £100,000 |
| 52 | Sander Berge | Fulham | 28 | June 2027 | £95,000 |
| 53 | Filip Kostić | Free Agent | 33 | June 2026 | £92,308 |
| 54 | Tomás Soucek | West Ham United | 31 | June 2027 | £90,000 |
| 55 | James Milner | Free Agent | 40 | June 2026 | £90,000 |
| 56 | Morgan Gibbs-White | Nottingham Forest | 26 | June 2027 | £80,000 |
| 57 | Joe Willock | Newcastle | 27 | June 2027 | £80,000 |
| 58 | Matt O’Riley | Brighton | 25 | June 2029 | £80,000 |
| 59 | Harvey Barnes | Newcastle | 28 | June 2028 | £80,000 |
| 60 | Joelinton | Newcastle | 30 | June 2028 | £80,000 |
| 61 | Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall | Everton | 28 | August 2029 | £80,000 |
| 62 | Guido Rodriguez | West Ham United | 32 | June 2028 | £80,000 |
| 63 | Thomas Partey | Free Agent | 33 | June 2026 | £77,000 |
| 64 | Joachim Andersen | Fulham | 30 | June 2029 | £75,002 |
| 65 | Jonjo Shelvey | Free Agent | 34 | June 2024 | £75,000 |
| 66 | Jean-Philippe Gbamin | Free Agent | 31 | June 2026 | £75,000 |
| 67 | Douglas Luiz | Free Agent | 28 | June 2026 | £75,000 |
| 68 | Jack Grealish | Everton | 29 | June 2028 | £75,000 |
| 69 | Emiliano Buendía | Aston Villa | 29 | June 2027 | £75,000 |
| 70 | Rodrigo Bentancur | Tottenham Hotspur | 29 | June 2028 | £75,000 |
| 71 | Jordan Henderson | Chelsea | 36 | June 2028 | £75,000 |
| 72 | Miguel Almirón | Free Agent | 32 | June 2024 | £74,000 |
| 73 | Jacob Ramsey | Newcastle | 25 | June 2027 | £70,000 |
| 74 | Pape Matar Sarr | Tottenham Hotspur | 24 | June 2030 | £70,000 |
| 75 | Jefferson Lerma | Crystal Palace | 31 | June 2027 | £70,000 |
| 76 | Daichi Kamada | Crystal Palace | 30 | June 2027 | £70,000 |
| 77 | David Brooks | Bournemouth | 29 | June 2029 | £70,000 |
| 78 | Amine Adli | Bournemouth | 26 | June 2029 | £70,000 |
| 79 | Ryan Christie | Bournemouth | 32 | June 2027 | £70,000 |
| 80 | Tyler Adams | Bournemouth | 27 | June 2027 | £70,000 |
| 81 | Giovani Lo Celso | Free Agent | 30 | June 2028 | £70,000 |
| 82 | Daniel James | Leeds United | 28 | June 2029 | £67,000 |
| 83 | Cheikhou Kouyaté | Free Agent | 36 | June 2024 | £65,000 |
| 84 | Ibrahim Sangare | Nottingham Forest | 29 | June 2028 | £65,000 |
| 85 | Mahmoud Dahoud | Brighton | 30 | June 2027 | £65,000 |
| 86 | Marcus Tavernier | Bournemouth | 27 | June 2029 | £65,000 |
| 87 | Ryan Fraser | Free Agent | 32 | June 2025 | £63,000 |
| 88 | Saša Lukić | Ipswich Town | 30 | June 2027 | £61,000 |
| 89 | Mats Wieffer | Brighton | 26 | June 2029 | £60,000 |
| 90 | Lewis Cook | Bournemouth | 29 | June 2028 | £60,000 |
| 91 | Daniel Podence | Free Agent | 30 | June 2027 | £60,000 |
| 92 | Morgan Rogers | Chelsea | 24 | June 2033 | £60,000 |
| 93 | Nicolo Zaniolo | Free Agent | 27 | June 2025 | £56,000 |
| 94 | Boubacar Traoré | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 25 | June 2027 | £55,000 |
| 95 | Mohamed Elneny | Free Agent | 34 | June 2024 | £55,000 |
| 96 | Callum Hudson-Odoi | Nottingham Forest | 25 | June 2028 | £55,000 |
| 97 | Yves Bissouma | Free Agent | 30 | June 2027 | £55,000 |
| 98 | Ryan Sessegnon | Fulham | 26 | June 2027 | £55,000 |
| 99 | Chris Richards | Crystal Palace | 26 | June 2027 | £52,000 |
| 100 | Isaac Hayden | Free Agent | 31 | June 2026 | £51,000 |
| 101 | Pascal Groß | Free Agent | 35 | July 2024 | £50,000 |
| 102 | Ross Barkley | Aston Villa | 32 | June 2027 | £50,000 |
| 103 | Carlos Alcaraz | Everton | 24 | June 2028 | £50,000 |
| 104 | Wataru Endo | Liverpool | 33 | June 2027 | £50,000 |
| 105 | Jeff Hendrick | Free Agent | 34 | June 2024 | £50,000 |
| 106 | Nicolás Domínguez | Nottingham Forest | 30 | June 2028 | £50,000 |
| 107 | Hamza Choudhury | Leicester City | 29 | June 2027 | £50,000 |
| 108 | Jeffrey Schlupp | Free Agent | 33 | June 2024 | £50,000 |
| 109 | Bilal El Khannouss | Free Agent | 22 | June 2030 | £50,000 |
| 110 | Oliver Skipp | Leicester City | 26 | June 2029 | £50,000 |
| 111 | Solly March | Free Agent | 32 | July 2026 | £50,000 |
| 112 | Abdullah Al-Khaibari | Al-Nassr | 30 | June 2029 | £49,231 |
| 113 | Antoni Milambo | Brentford | 21 | June 2030 | £48,000 |
| 114 | Cheick Doucouré | Crystal Palace | 26 | June 2027 | £47,000 |
| 115 | Harvey Elliott | Free Agent | 23 | July 2027 | £46,000 |
| 116 | John Lundstram | Free Agent | 32 | June 2026 | £45,500 |
| 117 | Roméo Lavia | Chelsea | 22 | June 2030 | £45,000 |
| 118 | Mario Lemina | Free Agent | 33 | June 2026 | £45,000 |
| 119 | Anton Stach | Leeds United | 27 | June 2029 | £45,000 |
| 120 | Abdullah Otayf | Free Agent | 34 | June 2027 | £43,000 |
| 121 | Remo Freuler | Free Agent | 34 | June 2025 | £43,000 |
| 122 | Bruno Jordão | Free Agent | 27 | June 2026 | £42,000 |
| 123 | Frank Onyeka | Coventry City | 28 | June 2028 | £41,000 |
| 124 | Harrison Reed | Fulham | 31 | June 2027 | £41,000 |
| 125 | Sean Longstaff | Leeds United | 28 | June 2029 | £40,000 |
| 126 | Habib Diarra | Sunderland | 22 | June 2029 | £40,000 |
| 127 | James Garner | Everton | 25 | June 2030 | £40,000 |
| 128 | Noah Sadiki | Sunderland | 21 | June 2030 | £40,000 |
| 129 | Dário Essugo | Chelsea | 21 | June 2033 | £40,000 |
| 130 | Josh Brownhill | Free Agent | 30 | June 2024 | £40,000 |
| 131 | Dan Ndoye | Nottingham Forest | 26 | June 2028 | £40,000 |
| 132 | James McAtee | Nottingham Forest | 23 | June 2030 | £40,000 |
| 133 | Alex Scott | Bournemouth | 23 | June 2028 | £40,000 |
| 134 | Harry Arter | Free Agent | 36 | June 2024 | £40,000 |
| 135 | Nathan Redmond | Free Agent | 32 | June 2025 | £40,000 |
| 136 | Jack Cork | Free Agent | 37 | June 2024 | £38,000 |
| 137 | Ryad Boudebouz | Free Agent | 36 | June 2025 | £38,000 |
| 138 | Amadou Onana | Aston Villa | 25 | July 2027 | £37,999 |
| 139 | Anthony Knockaert | Free Agent | 34 | June 2024 | £37,500 |
| 140 | Vitaly Janelt | Brentford | 28 | June 2030 | £37,000 |
| 141 | Amir Hadziahmetovic | Free Agent | 29 | June 2026 | £35,000 |
| 142 | Archie Gray | Tottenham Hotspur | 20 | June 2029 | £35,000 |
| 143 | Tommy Doyle | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 24 | June 2028 | £35,000 |
| 144 | Enzo Le Fee | Sunderland | 26 | June 2029 | £35,000 |
| 145 | Andrey Santos | Manchester United | 22 | June 2031 | £35,000 |
| 146 | Jacob Murphy | Newcastle | 31 | June 2027 | £35,000 |
| 147 | Adam Wharton | Crystal Palace | 22 | June 2029 | £35,000 |
| 148 | Jens Cajuste | Free Agent | 27 | June 2029 | £35,000 |
| 149 | Brenden Aaronson | Leeds United | 25 | June 2029 | £35,000 |
| 150 | Flynn Downes | Free Agent | 27 | June 2027 | £32,000 |
| 151 | Pity Martínez | Free Agent | 33 | August 2024 | £31,200 |
| 152 | Matt Grimes | Coventry City | 31 | June 2028 | £31,000 |
| 153 | Jack Hinshelwood | Brighton | 21 | June 2029 | £30,000 |
| 154 | Rodrigo Gomes | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 22 | June 2029 | £30,000 |
| 155 | Nicolò Fagioli | Free Agent | 25 | July 2026 | £30,000 |
| 156 | Demarai Gray | Free Agent | 30 | June 2028 | £30,000 |
| 157 | Jóhann Gudmundsson | Free Agent | 35 | June 2024 | £30,000 |
| 158 | Azor Matusiwa | Ipswich Town | 28 | June 2029 | £30,000 |
| 159 | Gustavo Scarpa | Free Agent | 32 | June 2026 | £30,000 |
| 160 | Máximo Perrone | Free Agent | 23 | June 2028 | £30,000 |
| 161 | Sammie Szmodics | Ipswich Town | 30 | June 2027 | £30,000 |
| 162 | Elliot Anderson | Manchester City | 23 | June 2031 | £30,000 |
| 163 | João Gomes | Aston Villa | 25 | June 2031 | £30,000 |
| 164 | Tom Cairney | Fulham | 35 | June 2027 | £27,000 |
| 165 | Diego Gómez | Brighton | 23 | June 2030 | £25,000 |
| 166 | Ao Tanaka | Leeds United | 28 | June 2028 | £25,000 |
| 167 | Lucas Bergvall | Tottenham Hotspur | 21 | June 2031 | £25,000 |
| 168 | Ryan Yates | Nottingham Forest | 28 | June 2028 | £25,000 |
| 169 | Yoane Wissa | Newcastle | 30 | June 2028 | £25,000 |
| 170 | Ilia Gruev | Leeds United | 26 | June 2028 | £25,000 |
| 171 | Ben Gannon-Doak | Bournemouth | 20 | June 2028 | £25,000 |
| 172 | Anis Mehmeti | Ipswich Town | 25 | June 2029 | £25,000 |
| 173 | Jaïro Riedewald | Free Agent | 30 | June 2026 | £25,000 |
| 174 | Alan Browne | Sunderland | 31 | June 2027 | £25,000 |
| 175 | Yang Min-Hyeok | Tottenham Hotspur | 20 | June 2029 | £24,997 |
| 176 | Matty Longstaff | Free Agent | 26 | June 2023 | £24,000 |
| 177 | John Fleck | Free Agent | 35 | June 2024 | £23,000 |
| 178 | Marcelino Nunez | Ipswich Town | 26 | June 2029 | £22,500 |
| 179 | Salis Abdul Samed | Sunderland | 26 | June 2027 | £22,000 |
| 180 | Tom Huddlestone | Free Agent | 39 | June 2024 | £22,000 |
| 181 | Oliver Norwood | Free Agent | 35 | June 2024 | £22,000 |
| 182 | Tahith Chong | Sheffield United | 26 | August 2029 | £22,000 |
| 183 | Mohamed Kanno | Free Agent | 32 | June 2025 | £21,000 |
| 184 | Kobbie Mainoo | Manchester United | 21 | June 2028 | £20,000 |
| 185 | Hannibal Mejbri | Burnley | 23 | August 2028 | £20,000 |
| 186 | Ethan Nwaneri | Arsenal | 19 | June 2030 | £20,000 |
| 187 | Christian Nørgaard | Everton | 32 | June 2028 | £20,000 |
| 188 | Mathias Jensen | Brentford | 30 | June 2027 | £20,000 |
| 189 | Abdulmajeed Al-Sulaiheem | Free Agent | 32 | August 2026 | £20,000 |
| 190 | Kasey McAteer | Ipswich Town | 24 | June 2029 | £20,000 |
| 191 | Mateus Fernandes | Tottenham Hotspur | 24 | June 2031 | £20,000 |
| 192 | Lesley Ugochukwu | Burnley | 24 | June 2027 | £20,000 |
| 193 | Michael Golding | Leicester City | 21 | June 2028 | £20,000 |
| 194 | Mukhtar Ali | Free Agent | 28 | August 2024 | £19,180 |
| 195 | Ben Osborn | Free Agent | 32 | June 2024 | £18,000 |
| 196 | Josh Cullen | Burnley | 30 | June 2027 | £17,500 |
| 197 | Jack Taylor | Ipswich Town | 28 | June 2028 | £17,500 |
| 198 | Matt Crooks | Hull City | 32 | June 2027 | £17,000 |
| 199 | Kieran Dowell | Hull City | 29 | June 2027 | £16,150 |
| 200 | Hamed Traorè | Bournemouth | 26 | June 2030 | £16,000 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the highest-paid midfielder in football?
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic is the highest-paid midfielder on Retained List, earning £416,566 per week at Al-Hilal.
How many midfielders are tracked on Retained List?
We currently track 200 senior midfielders across the leagues we cover. The list rebuilds whenever any player profile is edited.
What is the average wage of a midfielder?
See the position pay gap page for average, median and 90th-percentile wages by position. Forwards earn the highest mean wage, goalkeepers the lowest.
Does this list include loaned-out midfielders?
Yes, players are listed against the club that holds their contract. Loan destination clubs do not appear on a player's primary listing.
How are midfielders ranked on this page?
Players are ranked by gross weekly basic wage, descending. Free agents and players without a published wage figure are excluded from the top of the table.