Arsenal sell Martinelli to Al-Hilal for £60m, smashing their transfer record

Gabriel Martinelli has completed a £60m move from Arsenal to Al-Hilal, the Saudi Pro League club confirmed, making the 25-year-old Brazilian winger the most expensive player Arsenal have ever sold.

The fee comfortably surpasses the previous club record set when Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain joined Liverpool for £35m in 2017. Martinelli departs after seven years at the Emirates, having made 278 appearances in all competitions and scored 62 goals since arriving from Brazilian club Ituano in July 2019.

Arsenal’s decision to sell came amid a broader effort to refresh their attack during the transfer window. Speculation had linked the club with high-profile left-wing targets including Morgan Rogers and Vinicius Junior, but neither move materialised. Christos Tzolis is the only new attacker Arsenal added before the window closed. Martinelli had already been left out of the squad for both of the club’s Premier League fixtures this season, and turned down a move to Galatasaray last month.

In a farewell statement, Arsenal paid tribute to Martinelli’s role in the club’s recent successes: “During his seven years with us, the 25-year-old played an integral role in helping us win the Premier League last season, the FA Cup in 2020 and the FA Community Shield in 2023.”

On the international stage, Martinelli earned 27 caps for Brazil, represented his country at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics — where he won a gold medal — and featured at the 2024 Copa America and both the 2022 and 2026 FIFA World Cups.

He finished his final season at Arsenal with 53 appearances across all competitions, contributing 11 goals. The club wished him and his family well for the next chapter of his career in Saudi Arabia.