Osimhen remains Turkey’s highest-paid player

Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen remains the highest-paid footballer in Turkey despite Mohamed Salah’s high-profile move to Trabzonspor, with the Nigerian’s overall guaranteed earnings at Galatasaray exceeding the Egyptian’s annual package.

Salah joined Trabzonspor on a two-year contract after leaving Liverpool as a free agent at the end of the 2025/26 season. The deal is reportedly worth a net salary of €17 million per season, making him one of the highest-paid players in Turkish football based on basic wages.

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However, Osimhen’s Galatasaray contract, which runs until June 2029, includes a net annual salary of €15 million, alongside a €1 million loyalty bonus and a €5 million annual image-rights payment. The additional clauses raise his guaranteed yearly earnings to €21 million, leaving him €4 million ahead of Salah overall.

While Salah earns a higher base salary, Osimhen’s contractual bonuses ensure he remains Turkey’s top earner.

Salah’s contract also includes a performance-based commercial incentive, entitling him to 20 per cent of revenue generated from official Trabzonspor merchandise bearing his name, rather than a fixed image-rights payment.

For the former Liverpool forward to surpass Osimhen’s guaranteed earnings, merchandise sales linked to his name would need to generate more than €20 million annually—an ambitious target given Trabzonspor’s commercial reach, despite Salah’s global popularity.

Trabzonspor reportedly beat competition from Beşiktaş to secure Salah’s signature after negotiations between the player and the Istanbul club broke down over financial terms and agent commissions.

Saudi Pro League side Al Ittihad were also linked with the Egypt captain, with reports suggesting the club offered an annual salary of about $25 million before the move failed to materialise.

Although Trabzonspor president Ertuğrul Doğan had initially played down reports of a completed transfer, Salah has since finalised his move to the Turkish side.

Despite Salah’s arrival, Osimhen is expected to retain his position as Turkey’s highest-paid footballer unless the commercial incentives in the Egyptian’s contract generate unprecedented returns.