DANNY WELBECK turned down a whopping £140,000 a week in order to move to Brighton – but he’s by no means the only player to reject a staggering offer.
The English forward, 29, was released by Watford earlier this month – with the Championship club no longer able to afford him following their relegation.
Danny Welbeck turned down £140k a week from a Turkish side to join BrightonCredit: Instagram / @officialbhafc
A Super Lig club, believed to be Fenerbahce, offered Welbeck £140,000 a week to head to Turkey.
But Welbeck swiftly turned it down and instead put pen to paper on a deal at Brighton.
It’s not yet been confirmed how much the ex-Arsenal striker is pocketing on the South Coast, but the Turkish offer is believed to have been more than double the amount.
The Seagulls’ top-earners – Pascal Gross and Alireza Jahanbakhsh – are on around £50,000 a week.
Welbeck, though, is not the the first player to snub a mega-money contract – and he won’t be the last.
We’ve taken a look seven of the biggest rejections in football history, below…
CRISTIANO RONALDO
Cristiano Ronaldo turned down an offer worth £1.7m a week in 2018Credit: Reuters
Weekly wage rejected: £1.7m
Club: Unnamed Chinese Super League side
THE Portuguese star left Real Madrid in 2018 to join Juventus in a £99million deal.
However, that summer, he was offered a staggering £1.7m A WEEK to join an unnamed Chinese Super League club.
Ronaldo rejected the offer and instead opted for a ‘mere’ £540,000 per week.
LIONEL MESSI
Messi also rejected £1.7m a week from a Chinese club in 2018Credit: Reuters
Weekly wage rejected: £1.7m
Club: Unnamed Chinese Super League side
MESSI, too, was offered a staggering £1.7m a week to move to China in 2018.
The Argentine was reportedly subject to a bidding war – but the man himself extended his stay at Barcelona.
Messi is set to quit the Nou Camp next summer on a free transfer – but how much will he earn, then aged 34?
JOSE MOURINHO
Jose Mourinho rejected a bumper offer from China in between spells at Man Utd and SpursCredit: Reuters
Weekly wage rejected: £540,000
Club: Guangzhou Evergrande
IN the summer of 2019, Mourinho was still out of work having been sacked by Manchester United in December 2018.
And he was approached by CSL side Guangzhou Evergrande – who were willing to pay him £540,000 a week to take over BEFORE bonuses.
That would have made him easily the best-paid boss in the world.
Mourinho rejected the job and ,just months later, would go on to succeed Mauricio Pochettino at Tottenham.
JUAN MATA
Juan Mata turned down a bumper offer from the Middle East this monthCredit: EPA
Weekly wage rejected: £220,000
Club: Unnamed Saudi Arabian club
JUST this month, the Man Utd star was offered what would surely be his last bumper pay-day by.
Now aged 32, Mata has impressed with his cameos this season but knows he will struggle to cement a place in the starting XI.
Despite that, the Spanish former Chelsea ace opted to turn down a deal worth £220,000 per week in Saudi Arabia and stay at Old Trafford – at least for now.
DAVID LUIZ
David Luiz said no to a Qatari club offering him £220,000 a week for three yearsCredit: The Mega Agency
Weekly wage rejected: £220,000
Club: Unnamed Qatari side
IN the spring of 2019, Luiz was still at Chelsea when he was offered a three-year deal at a Qatari side, worth £220,000 a week.
However, the Brazilian rejected that offer and instead opted to join Arsenal in a £9m move.
His current contract is worth around £130,000 per week – nearly £100k shy of the sum offered from the Middle East.
WILLIAN
Willian rejected the chance to pocket £210,000 a week in China last yearCredit: Reuters
Weekly wage rejected: £210,000
Club: Shanghai Shenhua
JUST over a year ago, Shanghai Shenhua tried to poach Willian from Chelsea amidst his contract stand-off.
The CSL side offered him £210,000 per week for three years – the length of contract the Brazilian was demanding at Stamford Bridge.
They also offered him a flat, two chauffeur-driven cars and plane tickets to sweeten the deal.
Willian stayed put in London and opted to move to Arsenal this summer – snubbing an offer of £100,000 a week from Inter Miami in the process.
LUIS SUAREZ
Luis Suarez was approached by a Chinese club last winter byt turned them downCredit: EPA
Weekly wage rejected: £500,000*
Club: Unnamed Chinese Super League side
LAST December, Suarez was seemingly very happy at Barcelona – unaware he was set to fall-out with the club in just a few months.
But, happily living in Barca with his family and friends such as Lionel Messi, Suarez refused to have his head turned when a CSL club came knocking.
It’s not known exactly how much he was offered but many reports claimed it would have almost doubled his money.
Suarez was on £290,000 at Barca ahead of his move to Atletico Madrid – suggesting the offered wages were in the £500k per week ballpark.
Danny Welbeck turns down huge £140,000-a-week deal at Turkish Super Lig club to seal free transfer with Brighton
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
