Since earning promotion back to the Premier League in 2018, Wolverhampton Wanderers have been a consistent performer.
Their maintained status as a top-flight club is due to numerous reasons, but one of the biggest is their ability to sign gems in the transfer market.
Wolves have also successfully been able to gather funds via player sales, with Ruben Neves and Matheus Nunes serving as evidence for that.
However, there is one player who they have perhaps not struck gold with. Indeed, he even earns five times more than Rayan Ait Nouri.
Rayan Ait Nouri’s salary at Wolves
Algerian defender Ait Nouri has been fantastic this season, with new boss Gary O’Neil helping him go to a whole new level.
The 22-year-old has featured 24 times this season in the Premier League, thriving in a left-wing back role as well as in the standard left-back position, as highlighted by his goal at the weekend in Wolves’ 2-1 win over Fulham.
Ait Nouri joined the Old Gold permanently in 2021 after enjoying a loan spell from Angers in the season prior. The deal cost Wolves just £9.5m, which is already looking like a steal.
Despite being a consistent performer, the number 3 is one of the lowest earners in the Wolves squad, with his salary sitting at £10k-per-week, which is far less than that of one fringe player who occupies a similar full-back role.
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ByTom LeverMar 7, 2024 What Matt Doherty earns at Wolves
There’s no two ways about it: Matt Doherty will always be a Wolves hero for the role that he played in their promotion and brilliant first season back in the Premier League.
The Irish "menace," as described by journalist Jamie Weir, played 45 matches in the second tier, with nine goal contributions. Meanwhile, during their first year back in the top flight, Doherty played in every single game, scoring four goals and picking up seven assists.
In 2020, the 32-year-old left the Midlands for Tottenham Hotspur in a £15m deal. However, he struggled to perform at Spurs, and in January last year, the 6 foot 1 ace joined Atletico Madrid on a free transfer.
After a difficult spell in Spain where Doherty played just twice, he returned to Wolves in the summer on another free transfer, with the Wanderers making him one of the highest earners, with a wage of £50k-per-week, staggeringly five times more than what Ait Nouri earns.
Weekly wage
£10k
£50k
Starts
21
3
Pass accuracy
86%
76%
Tackles (per game)
2
0.6
Successful dribbles (per game)
1.9
0.2
However, it’s clear that Doherty is far from the first choice for O’Neil, with the Republic of Ireland international starting just three times in the league all campaign.
When you compare the statistics and what he’s offered compared to the Algerian, for example, it seems that Doherty is rinsing the club by earning £2.6m over this season.
The number two is also contracted to the club until June 2026, which means that unless he displaces either Nelson Semedo or Ait Nouri in the team, he will continue to cost Wolves a hefty number, despite offering very little on the pitch. Evidently, his best years are behind him.
