STEVEN GERRARD’s salary in Saudi Arabia is a staggering £15.2MILLION each year.
The former Liverpool midfielder’s new position at Al-Ettifaq has made him one of the highest-paid managers in the world.
Gerrard’s tax-free $20 million means he earns just slightly less than Liverpool’s £16 million-a-year manager Jurgen Klopp.
Only Diego Simeone (£30m) and Pep Guardiola (£20m) earn more than Gerrard now does for Manchester City and Atletico Madrid, respectively.
This enormous sum of money is what swayed the controversial transfer of the former Rangers and Aston Villa manager to the Middle East.
Gerrard is currently trying to convince his old teammate from Anfield, Jordan Henderson, to sign a £700,000 a week contract with the club.
Wilfried Zaha, a forward for Crystal Palace, is another target of the Liverpool icon, who has reportedly offered the player over £16 million annually.
Zaha isn’t really sold on the idea of relocating to Saudi Arabia just yet.
Despite a new contract being offered to him at Palace, he may decide to leave due to the higher salary.
Al-Ettifaq is headquartered in Dammam, the fourth largest city in Saudi Arabia.
Even though alcohol is illegal in Saudi Arabia, residents in Dammam have only a 70-minute drive to reach the liberal country of Bahrain.
It’s only 50 kilometers from the pubs, off-licenses, and nightclubs in Bahrain, so Gerrard will be able to lure British players despite the country’s extreme conservatism.
After the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia purchased Al-Ittihad, Al-Ahli, Al-Nassr, and Al-Hilal, several high-profile players made the move to Saudi Arabia this summer.
Darwin Nunez will wear the No.9 jersey for Liverpool for 2023-24.
The forward has opted to take the number that was left vacant after the departure of Roberto Firmino upon the expiry of his contract earlier this summer.
Fans who have already purchased new 2023-24 home and away jerseys printed with the name ‘Darwin’ and the number ‘27’ will be personally reimbursed by Nunez with a like-for-like exchange for a ‘Darwin 9’ shirt.
The exchange only applies to all ‘Darwin 27’ 2023-24 home and away shirts or kits purchased in official club retail outlets, via the official LFC online store or LFC Store app. Any qualifying shirts or kit must be returned with proof of purchase by 11.59pm BST on Saturday August 19, 2023. Full terms and conditions are available here.
Any ‘Darwin 27’ shirts and kit exchanged will be retained by the club and donated to LFC Foundation.
Liverpool has confirmed Darwin Nunez’s move to the No 9 shirt for Liverpool next season. The Uruguayan striker will take over the shirt number after Firmino leaves to join Al-Ahli on a free transfer. Liverpool also confirmed that it will return the fans who bought the number 27 shirt from Nunez.
“Darwin Nunez will wear the number 9 shirt for Liverpool in the 2023/24 season. Nunez chose this number to be vacated after Roberto Firmino left due to the expiration of his contract. Fans who have purchased the 2023/24 home and away shirt with Darwin’s name and number 27 will be personally changed by Nunez to the Darwin 9 shirt.
Nunez will become the next player to wear the number 9 shirt at Liverpool. This number has been worn by club legends such as Ian Rush, Robbie Fowler and Fernando Torres.
Nunez joined Liverpool from Benfica last summer for a fee of 80 million euros. In his first season at Anfield, Nunez won the Community Shield, and it was he who scored in that match.
In total, Nunez played 42 matches, and contributed 15 goals and 4 assists. These numbers may not satisfy the fans, but actually not bad for a player with wet feet coming to the club. The point where Nunez was criticized the most was the finishing touch. But at just 24 years old, Nunez has plenty of time to hone and improve his finishing ability.