Five players who were underpaid as Andy Carroll plays for just £1k a week

The old saying goes that the best things in life are free, but it turns out you can also do pretty well for yourself by paying for some things on the cheap. Just ask Reading.

The Royals recently brought former England striker Andy Carroll into the club in a bargain bit of business which reportedly sees him earn a measly £1,000-a-week – 75 times less than his reported wage at Newcastle.

While Reading may only be filling Carroll's pockets at a very gradual rate, the 32-year-old has already started repaying the Championship side's faith in him after bagging his first goal in his new club's thrilling 3-2 win over Swansea at the weekend.

Having once cost Liverpool a staggering £35million back in January 2011 when he completed a dramatic deadline day deal from boyhood club Newcastle, Carroll recently joined Reading on a free after seeing a second stint with the Magpies come to an end.

With the former Premier League frontman currently playing for a piffling price, Daily Star Sport takes a look at some of football's other underpaid stars, including one man who refused to even play for a penny.

Dani Alves

Which of these players is the best value for money? Let us know what you think in the comments section

Carroll isn't the only big name who has hit the headlines in recent weeks after agreeing to play for a poorly-paid fee following Dani Alves' sensational return to Barcelona.

The Spanish giants are current embroiled in a farcical financial crisis which saw them forced to say farewell to club icon Lionel Messi on a free transfer this summer as La Liga restrictions meant the cash-strapped club couldn't fund a new deal.

With Barca in turmoil, 38-year-old Alves answered the call to help his former side out by penning an 18-month deal with a reported salary of just €1-a-week and performance-related bonuses.

While some sources claim the barmy Brazilian is actually earning marginally more, he is believed to be receiving the lowest figure which any La Liga club is permitted to pay a senior player. Now that's loyalty.

Mason Mount

While it's needless to say Chelsea's Mason Mount is earning far more than any of the names mentioned so far, talk of the England midfielder being offered a whopping new contract suggests he is currently being paid some way below his actual worth.

In fact, when compared to the like of teammate and fellow Chelsea academy graduate Callum Hudson-Odoi, Mount is earning peanuts, relatively speaking.

The influential 22-year-old, who has established himself as an integral member of the Blues' side under Thomas Tuchel, is currently on wages of £75,000-a-week, a significantly lower figure compared to Hudson-Odoi's reported £120,000.

It therefore isn't much of a surprise that Mount is believed to have grown frustrated by his treatment compared to other high-profile names at the club, though if rumours are believed to be true, Chelsea's plans to double his pay packet could brighten his mood.

Jude Bellingham

Since moving from Birmingham City to Borussia Dortmund, Jude Bellingham has taken Europe by storm.

The youngster has established himself as one of the game's hottest midfield talents having lit up the Champions League with the German club and broken into the England fold, starring at this summer's Euros.

Much was made of Bellingham's £25million transfer to the Bundesliga in 2020 after Dortmund reportedly beat Manchester United to his signature and not even 18 months later, he is already being linked with a move back to his homeland as a number of top Premier League clubs are circling.

Given his current status in the game, it's hard to imagine a time when he wasn't earning mega-money but prior to his Dortmund move, a 16-year-old Bellingham was on as little as £145-a-week.

How times have changed though. Two years on, and the teenager is reportedly raking in weekly wages in the region of £50,000 with that figure set to skyrocket as the German outfit bid to fend of unwanted Premier League interest.

Trent Alexander Arnold

Another exciting English talent who has developed an almighty reputation within European football is that of Liverpool's Trent Alexander Arnold.

After making his debut for his boyhood club in 2016, Alexander Arnold established himself as a regular starter at right-back for the Reds during the 2018-19 campaign.

The versatile English youngster was a key member of the Liverpool side that claimed the 2019 Champions League crown before helping his beloved club to their first top-flight league title in 30 years only 12 months later.

At the time, Alexander Arnold was staggeringly unpaid, earning a mere £40,000 despite even being nominated for the 2019 Ballon d'Or.

Given his continued contributions to Jurgen Klopp's side, it was no surprise to see the 23-year-old rewarded with a long-term contract as recently as July 2021 with his wages bumped up to a reported £180,000-a-week, making him one of Liverpool's highest earners.

Oguchi Onyewu

Perhaps most remarkably of all is the story of forgotten former Newcastle centre back Oguchi Onyewu.

After impressing in the star-studded Standard Liege side of the late noughties, the American defender was snapped up by Italian giants AC Milan on a three-year deal in 2009.

After a severe injury sustained while on international duty sidelined him for the entirety of his first season at the club, Onyewu stunned Milan – and the rest of the football world – by offering to go unpaid for the following campaign as a thank you to the club for their patience and support during his lengthy layoff.

A Milan club statement at the time read: "Onyewu – who has been out for virtually the whole season due to injury, but who at this time is getting ready to face the World Cup adventure in South Africa with his national team – has become a star today with a significant gesture from a personal and professional standpoint.

"With respect to that year, as was his wish, which has been appreciated by the club, Onyewu has asked not to receive any type of wages. This is an exemplary gesture that deserves our sincere congratulations."

While the American sadly never did manage a minute of league action during his injury-ravaged 18-month spell, he did leave his mark on the club and on Zlatan Ibrahimovic after famously fighting with the outspoken Swede during a training ground bust-up.

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