The top 25 most expensive transfers that Arsenal have agreed to of all time, including their club record signings of Declan Rice, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Mesut Ozil.
Big money has not always brought big success to Emirates Stadium. But Arsenal have spent a lot in recent years to sign the elite targets that Arsene Wenger, Unai Emery or Mikel Arteta have identified. Arteta and sporting director Edu also continue to chase top-dollar additions.
Arteta has overseen an array of Arsenal’s most expensive transfers since he replaced Emery at the helm in December 2019. The Spaniard will hope his lucrative arrivals each also enjoy greater careers at the Gunners than the man Emery spent the most to sign whilst in charge.
Arsenal’s most expensive transfers and record signings
Wenger, meanwhile, started the north London natives’ era of spending huge sums when he lured Ozil to the Emirates. Arsenal had made their iconic manager count their pennies after moving from Highbury in 2006. But Ozil’s arrival in N5 was the start of a new era at Arsenal.
So, with that in mind, Arsenal Insider has taken a look into the most expensive transfers that Arsenal have yet agreed to, with an in-depth look at their top 10 deals and record signings…
10) Alexis Sanchez (from FC Barcelona), Granit Xhaka (from Borussia Monchengladbach), Shkodran Mustafi (from Valencia) – £35m
Alexis Sanchez was the first player to set Arsenal back £35m as he joined from FC Barcelona in July 2014. Wenger also paid £35m to sign Granit Xhaka from Borussia Monchengladbach in May 2016, before fluttering £35m to sign Shkodran Mustafi from Valencia in August 2016.
Of the Gunners’ £35m signings yet, Sanchez had the best career at Emirates Stadium. The Chilean forward won the FA Cup twice with Arsenal, and particularly shone in the 2017 final against Chelsea. He also scored 80 goals and 43 assists in his 166 outings in red-and-white.
But Sanchez left north London to join rivals Manchester United in a straight swap deal with Henrikh Mkhitaryan in January 2018. The deal did not pay off for either club with Sanchez’s Old Trafford days yielding five goals and nine assists in 45 appearances to September 2020.
Xhaka also enjoyed a largely strong career in north London, which saw the Swiss midfielder replace Laurent Koscielny as their captain in September 2019. He only retained the role for two months. But Xhaka later revived his Arsenal career under Arteta to be a fans’ favourite.
Arsenal ultimately sold Xhaka to Bayer Leverkusen, where he won the Bundesliga in his first season, in July 2023. He left after scoring 23 and assisting 29 goals over 297 appearances as mainly a defensive midfielder. His last term was also his best with nine goals in 47 games.
Mustafi, on the other hand, often struggled to live up to his price tag as a rather calamitous centre-back. Arsenal even terminated Mustafi’s contract in February 2021 to get him out of the club. The German regularly produced errors through his 151 appearances with the club.
9) Mesut Ozil (from Real Madrid) – £42.5m
Arsenal saw in a new era of high-ticket transfers in September 2013 as Wenger secured the club record signing of Ozil from Real Madrid for £42.5m. The playmaker was the third-most expensive signing in British football history then, behind Fernando Torres and Carlos Tevez.
Ozil arrived in N5 as a one-time La Liga champion with Los Blancos but let Arsenal as a 2014 World Cup winner. He even helped Germany to enjoy global success on the back of helping Wenger end Arsenal’s nine-year trophy drought by beating Hull City in the 2014 FA Cup final.
Arsenal would win the FA Cup four times during Ozil’s career at Emirates Stadium with titles in 2015, 2017 and 2020. His wand of a left foot also helped the playmaker to offer 75 assists and 44 goals in 254 games. Ozil left Arsenal in January 2021 for Turkish side Fenerbahce.
7) Thomas Partey (from Atletico Madrid), Gabriel Jesus (from Manchester City) – £45m
Arsenal have twice spent £45m to secure a signing under Arteta with the Spaniard triggering the £45m release clause in the contract of Thomas Partey with Atletico Madrid, plus sending £45m to his one-time employers Manchester City to get the transfer of striker Gabriel Jesus.
The Gunners left it right until the final moments of deadline day in October 2020 to activate Partey’s release clause. He was the midfield general at Atletico but injuries have often taken their toll on the Ghanaian at Arsenal. Yet, when fit, Partey is among the game’s top anchors.
Jesus, meanwhile, joined Partey at Arsenal in July 2022 when Arteta raided Manchester City for a new No9. The Brazilian immediately had a transformative effect on the Gunners’ attack with his dogged runs. Jesus also added the experience of winning four Premier League titles.
6) Alexandre Lacazette (from Lyon) – £46.5m
Wenger broke Arsenal’s transfer record in July 2017 to secure the expensive signing of Lyon striker Alexandre Lacazette for £46.5m. The forward’s switch even featured a further £6m in potential add-ons. The Frenchman also said the move ‘fulfilled’ a ‘dream’ to play for Arsenal.
Lacazette grew up longing to play for the Gunners due to Arsenal legend and France’s 1998 World Cup winner, Thierry Henry. His time in north London even saw the Lyon native serve as their captain. Arteta gave Lacazette the armband prior to his return to Les Gones in 2022.
The Lyon product returned to the Ligue 1 giants having scored 71 and assisted 33 goals over 206 outings for Arsenal. But Lacazette often offered Arsenal more than just his threat inside the penalty area. He also did a lot of the grunt work that let the Gunners build their attacks.
5) Ben White (from Brighton & Hove Albion) – £50m
Arteta made signing Ben White from Brighton & Hove Albion one of Arsenal’s main transfer objectives in the summer of 2021. The Gunners ultimately secured a £50m deal in July 2021 after the Poole native had just made his senior debut for England against Austria that June.
White stood out to Arteta as a player who could move the ball out of Arsenal’s defence after only one season of Premier League football at Brighton. The defender also impressed whilst on loan to Leeds United in the 2019/20 Championship season and has been a hit for Arteta.
He immediately offered a composed presence in the heart of the Gunners’ backline during the 2021/22 term. White has also developed into one of the best right-backs in the Premier League since the 2022/23 season. He provides a brilliant and consistent outlet at both ends.
4) Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (from Borussia Dortmund) – £56m
Wenger bet big in January 2018 to secure the then-club record signing of Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund in a £56m transfer. The Gabon striker switched to Emirates Stadium with a prolific record in Germany and proved to be a huge success across much of his time in N5.
Aubameyang left BVB with 141 goals and 36 assists in 213 matches and went on to score 92 and create 21 in 163 games for Arsenal. The centre-forward even scored 10 goals in his first 13 Premier League games and then 22 in each of his first two full English top-flight seasons.
Things turned sour towards the end of Aubameyang’s Arsenal career, though, and they paid him £7m in February 2022 to terminate a £350k-a-week contract. Arteta stripped the striker of Arsenal’s captaincy in December 2021 following Aubameyang’s latest disciplinary breach.
3) Kai Havertz (from Chelsea) – £62.5m
Arsenal prepared for Xhaka’s departure from north London in June 2023 by pushing through a £62.5m, plus £5m with add-ons, transfer for Kai Havertz from Chelsea as one of their most expensive signings. Yet the German left west London with questions hanging over the move.
Many pundits doubted why Arteta bought Havertz to fill Xhaka’s place in the left of Arsenal’s midfield. Darren Bent even said Havertz offers ‘nothing’ after Arsenal drew 2-2 with Fulham in August 2023. Yet the German grew into the Gunners’ system to be a versatile goal threat.
2) Nicolas Pepe (from LOSC Lille) – £72m
Emery finished his first season as the Gunners’ manager fifth in the Premier League table in 2018/19. So, Arsenal secured one of their most expensive signings with a £72m club record transfer from LOSC Lille for Nicolas Pepe in August 2019. But they only paid £20m upfront.
Arsenal signed off on Pepe’s transfer as Lille agreed for them to spread the remaining £52m over five years. But the structure of the transfer would not see Pepe be anything other than an expensive flop. He never seemed like a player worth anything near what Emery invested.
Pepe drew Arsenal’s interest with 22 goals, including nine penalties, and 11 assists over the 2018/19 Ligue 1 season. Yet his entire Gunners career only featured 27 goals and 21 assists in 112 games. The Ivorian also scored just 16 and assisted nine in 80 Premier League games.
Eventually, Arsenal agreed to terminate Pepe’s contract to get him off the Gunners’ books in September 2023. The Gunners had failed to secure a fee for his transfer during that summer after spending the 2022/23 season on loan to OGC Nice. Pepe joined Trabzonspor for free.
1) Declan Rice (from West Ham United) – £100m
Stan Kroenke, Arsenal’s owner, whipped out his chequebook and then some in July 2023 as Arteta signed Rice in a club record £100m, plus £5m in add-ons, transfer. The sum matched the record fee between two British clubs that Jack Grealish’s switch to Manchester City set.
Rice left West Ham United after a decade to join Arsenal with his final act in claret-and-blue being winning their first major trophy since 1980. He captained the Hammers to the Europa Conference League title during the midfielder’s first campaign as the Irons’ full-time skipper.
The England international had served as West Ham’s vice-captain since the 2020/21 season behind Mark Noble. Rice had also developed into one of Europe’s best holding midfielders at London Stadium after joining West Ham aged 14. His reading of the game set Rice apart.
Arsenal’s top 25 most expensive transfer signings of all time
Below, Arsenal Insider has listed the top 25 most expensive transfers that Arsenal have ever agreed to, based on the initial fee before any future add-ons paid for the players’ signings…
25) Lucas Perez (from Deportivo La Coruna) – August 2016 – £17m
24) Jakub Kiwior (from Spezia) – January 2023 – £17.5m plus £3.5m in add ons
23) Leandro Trossard (from Brighton) – January 2023 – £20m plus £7m in add-ons
22) Bernd Leno (from Bayer Leverkusen) – June 2018 – £22m
21) Aaron Ramsdale (from Sheffield United) – August 2021 – £24m plus £6m in add-ons
20) Kieran Tierney (from Celtic) – August 2019 – £25m
19) Lucas Torreira (from Sampdoria) – July 2018 – £26.5m
17) Gabriel Magalhaes (from Lille) – September 2020 – £27m
17) William Saliba (from Saint-Etienne) – July 2019 – £27m
15) Fabio Vieira (from Porto) – June 2022 – £30m plus £4m in add-ons
15) Martin Odegaard (from Real Madrid) – August 2021 – £30m plus £4m in add-ons
14) Oleksandr Zinchenko (from Manchester City) – July 2022 – £32m
13) Jurrien Timber (from Ajax) – July 2023 – £34m plus £4.5m in add-ons
10) Shkodran Mustafi (from Valencia) – August 2016 – £35m
10) Granit Xhaka (from Borussia Monchengladbach) – May 2016 – £35m
10) Alexis Sanchez (from Barcelona) – July 2014 – £35m
9) Mesut Ozil (from Real Madrid) – September 2013 – £42.5m
7) Gabriel Jesus (from Manchester City) – July 2022 – £45m
7) Thomas Partey (from Atletico Madrid) – October 2020 – £45m
6) Alexandre Lacazette (from Lyon) – July 2017 – £46.5m plus £6m in add-ons
5) Ben White (from Brighton) – July 2021 – £50m
4) Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (from Borussia Dortmund) – January 2018 – £56m
3) Kai Havertz (from Chelsea) – June 2023 – £62.5m plus £5m in add-ons
2) Nicolas Pepe (from Lille) – August 2019 – £72m
1) Declan Rice (from West Ham) – July 2023 – £100m plus £5m in add-ons
