Lionel Messi beats Ronaldo, Neymar as world's most paid players for new season
- Lionel Messi will earn more than any other player by the end of the 2020-21 season
- Juventus Cristiano Ronaldo and Paris Saint-Germain's Neymar complete the top three
- ManUnited stars including Paul Pogba and David de Gea are also on the list
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Lionel Messi's U-turn about not leaving Barcelona has had its significance on his personal earnings as the Argentine star would emerge the highest paid footballer on the planet ahead of the new season, Forbes claim.
The 33-year-old who almost ditched the Camp Nou this summer will be taking home a massive $126million beating rival Cristiano Ronaldo who would work home with $117m to second spot.
Paris Saint-Germain star Neymar retains his third spot with a $96m while future Ballon d'Or winner, Kylian Mbappe climbs to fourth with an expected take-home of $42m.
Source: Getty Images
Liverpool's priceless jewel and last weekend's hat-trick hero Mohamed Salah will have a total of $37m in his account at the end of the 2020-21 season.
Manchester United's Paul Pogba has not been left out of the bunch with a yearly income of $28m taking him to sixth position.
Pogba's fellow countryman and Barcelona star Antoine Griezman is seventh with a $33m annual income while out-of-favour Real Madrid star Gareth Bale will smile to the bank with $29m.
Last season's European Golden Boot winner and Champions League winner Robert Lewandowski is expected to walk away with $28m.
And Man United's shot-stopper who will battle for the club's number one jersey this season with Dean Henderson, David de Gea completes the top ten with a take-home of $24m.
Below is a comprehension breakdown of the top-earning footballers in salaries and endorsements.
1. Lionel Messi, Barcelona (Salary: $92m, Endorsements $34 m, Total: $126m)
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2. Cristiano Ronaldo, Juventus (Salary: $70m, Endorsements: $47m, Total: $117m)
3. Neymar, PSG (Salary: $78m, Endorsements: $18m, Total: $96m)
4. Kylian Mbappe, PSG (Salary: $28m, Endorsements: $14m)
5. Mohamed Salah, Liverpool (Salary: $24,m, Endorsements: $13m, Total: $37m)
6. Paul Pogba, Man United (Salary: $28m, Endorsements: $6m., Total: $34m)
7. Antoine Griezmann, Barcelona (Salary: $28m, Endorsements: $5m $31m)
8. Gareth Bale, Real Madrid (Salary: $23m, Endorsements: $6m, Total: $29m)
9. Robert Lewandowski, Bayern Munich (Salary: $24m, Endorsements: $4m, Total: $28m)
10. David De Gea, Man United (Salary: $24m, Endorsements: $3m, Total: $27m)
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Meanwhile, Legit.ng had earlier reported that Cristiano Ronaldo's brace against Sweden in the UEFA Nations League clash took his tally for Portugal to 101.
The 35-year-old scored his 100th with an exquisite free-kick while his second was even a better finish than the first.
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He is now the second player in history to reach a century of goals wearing the colours of his national team after Iran's Ali Daei.
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