Gabriel Martinelli has left Arsenal for Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal in a deal worth a fixed £60m — the highest fee the Gunners have ever received for a player.

The transfer, which also includes a sell-on clause, eclipses the previous club record of £40m Arsenal collected when they sold Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to Liverpool in the summer of 2017. Because Martinelli arrived from Brazilian club Ituano as an 18-year-old, the entire £60m represents pure profit on Arsenal's books.

A long run at the Emirates

Martinelli joined Arsenal in 2019 and went on to make 191 Premier League appearances for the club, contributing 41 goals and 24 assists across his time in north London.

Last season, as Arsenal ended a 22-year wait to win the Premier League title, the Brazilian featured in 30 league games — but only 11 of those were starts, his fewest in a single campaign since 2020/21. His diminishing role in Mikel Arteta's plans appeared to pave the way for his departure.

Saudi move after Turkey snub

Martinelli's switch to Riyadh comes after he had earlier rejected an approach from Galatasaray. The Turkish club had tabled an offer of approximately £38.9m this summer, but the 25-year-old was unwilling to move to Turkey and held out for an alternative destination.

His sale takes the total Arsenal have raised from player departures this summer to over £120m.

Tzolis steps in on the left

Arsenal have already moved to address the gap left by Martinelli's exit, signing Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge to compete for the left-wing berth. Tzolis started in Arsenal's opening-day victory over Coventry, a match for which Martinelli was not even included in the matchday squad — a sign that his future lay elsewhere.