I left Newcastle United in 2018 - now PIF pay me more than Bruno Guimaraes & Alexander Isak combined

Toney left Newcastle in 2018 after various loan spells and just four first-team appearances without scoring. After initially joining Peterborough United, Toney established a career for himself at the top level with Brentford.

The striker scored 72 goals in 141 games for The Bees, becoming an England international in the process. Over the summer, amid plenty of interest from across the Premier League, Toney raised eyebrows by joining Saudi Pro League side Al Ahli for £40million.

The transfer, according to Peterborough chairman Darragh MacAnthony, made Newcastle a nominal fee due to the nature of a sell-on agreement with his club. It also saw Toney receive a bumper pay rise with his weekly wage now reported to be around £400,000 per week.

It puts Toney up with Harry Kane as the highest-paid Englishman in football. His wage at Newcastle was reported to be less than £5,000 a week before he departed six years ago.

Both Newcastle and Al Ahli are majority-owned by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund. Yet Toney’s new salary dwarfs some of Newcastle’s highest earners such as Bruno Guimaraes and Alexander Isak.

With fewer financial restrictions in the Saudi Pro League, the majority of the best-paid footballers in the world now play in the division having left European clubs. After playing an important role for England at Euro 2024, Toney has since lost his place in the England squad following his move to Saudi Arabia. But the 28-year-old has made a positive start to life at Al Ahli with three goals and an assist in his opening seven matches.

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After securing a move to Al Ahli in the summer, Toney held a farewell party with his close friends in which he offered an open invitation for them to visit him in Saudi Arabia - giving a nod to his bumper wage packet by stating ‘flights are on me’.

A video surfaced online which showed Toney delivering a speech.

“Obviously, it’s all love,” he said. “You’ve all been invited to my place for your own reasons. We’ve got some great memories together, I’m sure. Maybe we’re a bit older, but we’re still having fun.

“But yeah, you can all come over anytime. Flights are on me. Don’t worry, you’ll stay with me. We’ll enjoy this time."

His new team-mates include former Manchester City winger Riyad Mahrez, ex Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy and young midfielder Gabri Veiga, who was previously a transfer target of Newcastle in 2023. Allan Saint-Maximin left Newcastle in 2023 to join Al Ahli but has since joined Turkish club Fenerbahçe on loan for the 2024-25 season.

It appears the Saudi Pro League is here to stay and tempt players away from Europe’s top leagues with the lure of huge salaries for an arguably easier and less demanding job. A motion to prevent Newcastle doing loan business with PIF-owned Saudi clubs failed to pass last season but The Magpies have so far refrained from taking advantage of the link.