Arsenal could be rather active in the transfer market over the coming weeks as the start of the 2026/27 Premier League season edges ever closer.

The Premier League champions have so far added to their squad with the permanent additions of Illan Meslier, Piero Hincapie and Christos Tzolis.

Newcastle captain Bruno Guimaraes is on course to be the next player to sign on the dotted line at the Emirates Stadium in a deal worth £75m.

All connected with the Gunners will then be hoping that fellow Brazilian Vinicius Jr follows suit amid the prospect of Arsenal agreeing a blockbuster transfer with Real Madrid.

If it isn’t to be Vinicius Jr, Everton’s Iliman Ndiaye could potentially be an alternative option to boost the club’s attack going into the new term.

Ndiaye enquiry

Ndiaye has found himself in the headlines this summer regarding a potential move away from Everton.

The £75m-rated Senegal international, who has just rejoined his Toffees teammates for pre-season training in Germany, has been linked with a move to Saudi club Al Hilal.

According to GiveMeSport senior football correspondent Ben Jacobs, Arsenal are one of the clubs that have enquired about the former Marseille man.

Speaking on the Latte Firm – Arsenal FC YouTube Channel, he said: “I heard the other day that Iliman Ndiaye is a player that Arsenal really like. He’s rejected a contract proposal at Everton for now and Al Hilal are working on that deal, maybe they’ll pull it off, but Arsenal are one of the clubs that made an enquiry.”

The 26-year-old would give Mikel Arteta options across his frontline due to his ability to play on either wing and also through the middle.

In his two seasons with Everton, Ndiaye has contributed 17 goals in 71 appearances for the Merseyside club.

Ndiaye’s next goal

If Ndiaye is to depart Hill Dickinson Stadium this summer, a move to a club playing Champions League football would certainly appeal to the player.

Speaking ahead of the World Cup, the attacker made it clear that he wants to be playing in Europe’s premier competition in the future.

“Everyone’s going to be watching the World Cup. It’s definitely a big opportunity for me,” said Ndiaye in an interview with SPORTbible.

“You don’t know where football will take you next. As I’ve always said, I want to be the best player and to do that, you have to play at the top.

“I want to be playing at the top level. I want to be playing Champions League football.”

A new era at Newcastle United is now underway following the appointment of Matthias Jaissle as the club’s new head coach.

The 38-year-old German takes on the top job at St James’ Park going into the new season following Eddie Howe’s departure after almost five years at the club.

It has been a summer of change on Tyneside with key players Sandro Tonali and Anthony Gordon completing transfers to Tottenham and Barcelona respectively prior to Howe’s exit.

Captain Bruno Guimaraes is set to become the latest high-profile departure with a £75m move to Premier League champions Arsenal to be finalised.

Newcastle have already brought in five new players so far this summer but more could be set to follow when it comes to rebuilding the squad at Jaissle’s disposal.

El Khannouss transfer option

Reuters

Newcastle are one of three Premier League clubs targeting a move for VfB Stuttgart ace Bilal El Khannouss this summer.

The Moroccan will be familiar to many fans after spending one year with Leicester City during the 2024/25 campaign before joining Stuttgart on loan last summer.

The attacking midfielder’s move was made permanent back in May after contributing nine goals in 41 appearances for the Bundesliga outfit.

However, a possible exit from the MHPArena is a possibility with Newcastle one of a trio of Premier League clubs eyeing him up.

According to FußballDaten.de, the Magpies, Tottenham and Crystal Palace are all interested in the Moroccan international.

Newcastle’s scouting department view El Khannouss as a player who has the physicality and technical skills to cope with the intense nature of the Premier League.

As the north east club would be able to meet the player’s salary demands, this strengthens the club’s position in the transfer market when it comes to trying to win the race for his signature.

El Khannouss potential transfer fee

El Khannouss, described as being ‘very similar to Rayan Cherki’ of Man City by journalist Graeme Bailey, is currently contracted to Stuttgart until the summer of 2029 after only recently turning his loan deal into a permanent move.

Despite the success of the player in his first year with the German club, they would be willing to sanction his exit if a bid they deem acceptable comes in for his services.

FußballDaten.de report that the club’s leadership would demand a fee between €40-50m (£34.3m-£42.9m) for El Khannouss.

Loans or purchase options below the figure are not to be considered, with a direct payment or binding purchase obligation something that would be deliberated.

The mid-2000s WWE was an era to behold. While the likes of Edge, Kurt Angle, and Eddie Guerrero were in their peak years, John Cena, Randy Orton, and Batista were writing the first chapters of their incredible stories.

With this period in WWE featuring one of the most stacked rosters in the company’s history, the financial outlay for talent across the board was understandably high.

The vast majority of Superstars at the time were earning six figures, with some of the more popular wrestlers securing lucrative add-ons to their contracts.

Seven-time Women’s Champion Trish Stratus, bringing in $618,000 in 2006, also managed to negotiate a 20% cut of her merchandise sales. Arguably the most popular female Superstar at the time, that would have earned her a fair few additional pennies. The likes of Ric Flair and Kane also had all of their flights – in first class, no less – paid for by the company.

But when it came down to the most important figure, the actual salary, many fans would expect that the 17-time world champion John Cena would be 2006’s top earner. During that year, he captured his second and third world titles, defeating Edge both times. With these accomplishments, Cena had established himself as the face of the company, a position he would hold for the next decade. But despite his star player status, he wasn’t the company’s biggest earner at the time. Surprisingly, he wasn’t even in the top two.

John Cena Third Highest-Paid WWE Superstar of 2006

However, considering the longevity and prestige of the two Superstars above him, Cena couldn’t be too displeased with his more than ample $1,743,000 salary plus benefits.

Finishing their careers with a combined 21 world titles, Triple H and The Undertaker were deemed WWE’s most valuable assets at the time of Cena’s ascent. Triple H topped the list with his $2,013,000 annual pay. Chief among his additional benefits was access to WWE’s private jet 10 times a year.

The Undertaker was close behind with a cool $1,811,000. ‘Taker continues to be a strong visual presence following his in-ring retirement in 2020. He appeared during WrestleMania 40’s main event, assisting Cody Rhodes in his win over Roman Reigns. More recently, he has featured as a mentor on LFG, WWE’s reality television programme.

Triple H, meanwhile, continues to lead the company creatively, having been CCO of WWE since 2022. He was also inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame for a second time last year.

As for John Cena, who retired from in-ring competition himself at the end of 2025, his rise to wrestling success came from extremely humble beginnings. He earned his first contract with WWE in 2000, and it was far below his seven-figure earnings just six years later.

“My first contract with WWE was $12,000 a year,” Cena revealed to Kevin Hart on his Peacock show Heart to Hart. “I quit my job the day I was signed. I think my rent was $1,000 a month. So all my money is now rent. When I told my mom, she’s like, ‘I hope you’re okay.'”

Thankfully for Cena (and his mum), the WWE legend’s gamble paid off.