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The Italian Serie A is one of the most competitive football leagues in the world. Many quality players ply their trade in the Italian top flight.
That is true even after the return of Cristiano Ronaldo and Romelu Lukaku - two standout performers in the 2020-21 Serie A - back to the Premier League this summer. The two players were among the top wage earners in the division.
In the 2020-21 season, the Serie A had a total wage bill of €1.36 billion, with Juventus accounting for €236 million. Ronaldo earned a whopping €31 million, which was almost four times more than any other Bianconeri player.
But even after his departure this summer, Juventus (€213.4 million) have the highest wage bill in Serie A. That is also one of the highest wage bills across all sports.
On that note, here are the ten best-paid players (base salaries excluding bonuses) in the 2021-22 Serie A:
#10 Alex Sandro (Juventus) ~ €115,000 per week
Alex Sandro is one of several Juventus players who is one of the top earners in the Italian Serie A this season.
The 30-year-old left-back has made over 200 appearances for the Bianconeri, with 163 of these games coming in the Serie A. Sandro, who has scored only 13 times across competitions for the Bianconeri, recently scored his first brace for the club.
The five-time Serie A winner is contracted to Juventus until 2023, and reportedly earns €6 million a year. That is equivalent to around €115,000 a week.
#9 Edin Dzeko (Inter Milan) ~ €115,000 per week
Edin Dzeko is one of the most prolific strikers in Serie A at the moment. The 35-year-old recently made his 200th appearance in the competition when he made his league debut for Inter Milan this season.
One of a handful of players to score 50 goals in three top-five leagues, Dzeko joined the Nerazzurri for free despite having a year on his AS Roma contract.
The all-time Bosnia and Herzegovina top scorer will reportedly earn €6 million a year at Inter. That would translate to an approximate weekly earning of €115,000.
#8 Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus) ~ €125,000 per week
Leonardo Bonucci has been a standout performer for club and country for a few years now.
The veteran defender recently made history by becoming the oldest player to score in the European Championship final. He also scored in that penalty-shootout win over England in Italy's triumphant Euro 2020 campaign.
The 34-year-old centre-back has won nine Serie A titles - all but one of them with Juventus. He recently signed a contract extension that would keep him at the club until 2024.
Bonucci reportedly earns €6 million a year with the record Serie A champions, making his weekly on-field earnings roughly €125 million.
#7 Wojciech Szczesny (Juventus) ~ €125,000 per week
Juventus custodian Wojciech Szczesny has made close to 200 Serie A appearances, with most of them coming with the Bianconeri.
The former Arsenal keeper is a three-time Serie A winner with Juventus and is contracted to the club until 2024. He has been a decent shot-stopper for the Bianconeri, recently making a career-best eight Serie A saves in a game against AC Milan.
The Poland international reportedly takes home an annual salary of €6.5 million, which is around €125,000 per week.
#6 Zlatan Ibrahimovic (AC Milan) ~ €134,000 per week
Four-time Serie A winner Zlatan Ibrahimovic is one of the most decorated players in European club football. The AC Milan striker is still going strong despite approaching 40.
The Sweden international has won 11 league titles in four different countries - Netherlands, Italy, Spain and France. Ibrahimovic recently scored his 500th goal in club football, with 82 of them coming for his current club AC Milan.
The former Manchester United player reportedly took a 95% pay cut to join his previous club LA Galaxy. But he is one of the most well-paid players in the Serie A, taking home an annual salary of €7 million. That translates to about €134,000 per week.
Ibrahimovic is only three strikes away from 150 Serie A goals, a milestone he will likely achieve this season.
#5 Adrien Rabiot (Juventus) ~ €134,000 per week
Adrien Rabiot hasn't really sizzled in his two-season stint in Serie A since arriving at Juventus in the summer of 2019. But the 26-year-old Frenchman has been a steady performer for the Bianconeri. The 2019-20 Serie A winner has scored thrice and assisted four times in over 60 games in the competition.
Rabiot, a six-time Ligue 1 winner with PSG, made news for refusing to be in France's list of stand-bys for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which Les Bleus won. But he has largely stayed away from controversies during his stay in Turin.
The Frenchman, who made his season debut in the defeat to Empoli, is contracted to Juventus until 2004. He reportedly earns €7 million a year at the club, which translates to around €134,000 a week.
#4 Aaron Ramsey (Juventus) ~ €134,000 per week
Aaron Ramsey has had a largely underwhelming stint at record Serie A champions Juventus on a free transfer in the summer of 2019.
The former Arsenal midfielder has scored five goals and assisted six in nearly 50 Serie A games for the Bianconeri. He was one of many players linked with an exit from Juventus this summer. But Ramsey stayed put, making his season debut in the 2-2 draw at Empoli.
The 30-year-old is one of the best-paid players in Serie A, reportedly taking home an annual salary of €7 million. That comes to around €134,000 per week.
#3 Paolo Dybala (Juventus) ~ €140,000 per week
Paolo Dybala is one of the few high-profile players left in Serie A after the departures of Ronaldo and Lukaku.
The 27-year-old Argentinian, who largely plays as a second striker, has been a decent performer in the competition. Dybala has won five Serie A titles with Juventus. He has made 135 goal contributions (89 goals, 46 assists) in the Italian top flight, most of them for the Bianconeri.
Dybala, whose current contract with Juventus expires in 2022, reportedly earns €7.3 million per year at the club. That translates to roughly €140,000 per week.
#2 Christian Eriksen (Inter Milan) ~ €144,000 per week
Christian Eriksen has had a pretty underwhelming stint in Serie A. Since arriving at Inter Milan two years ago, the 29-year-old midfielder has made seven goal contributions (three goals, four assists) in 40 games in the competition.
The 2020-21 Serie A winner made news for collapsing on the field during a Euro 2020 game between Denmark and Finland. Eriksen, facing a long road to recovery, recently made a return to Inter Milan's training ground.
The Denmark international, who is contracted with Inter till 2024, reportedly earns an annual salary of €7.5 million. That translates to approximately €144,000 per week.
#1 Matthijs de Ligt (Juventus) ~ €153,000 per week
Matthijs de Ligt is widely regarded as one of the best young centre-backs in the game at the moment.
Still only 21, the Dutchman was snapped up by Juventus on a big-money (€75 million) transfer two years ago. That came after the then-teenaged De Ligt led from the front in taking Ajax on a fairy-tale run to the Champions League semi-finals.
A quintessential goal-scoring centre-back, the former Ajax captain has provided ten goal contributions (5 goals, 5 assists) in over 50 Serie A games.
Touted as one of Juventus' future leaders, De Ligt is contracted to the club until 2024. The Dutchman reportedly earns an annual salary of €8 million, which roughly translates to €153,000 per week, making De Ligt the most well-paid player in the Italian top flight.
