There was no confirmation of Albert Sambi Lokonga’s sale fee after he left Arsenal, as the Gunners were aware that they didn’t make as much as they perhaps should have for him.
Arsenal have been involved in some pretty dire transfer sales over the years.
From Robin van Persie’s sale to Manchester United to the Alexis Sanchez and Henrikh Mkhitaryan swap deal, there have been some terrible sales.
Still, even those examples weren’t as poor as Lokonga’s exit.
Lokonga was once tipped to be Arsenal captain, joining the club as a rising star, only to leave after making just 39 appearances.
Sure, the Belgian didn’t have the impact some would have hoped, but he also didn’t have the opportunity.
Nothing, however, excuses his abysmal sale price, as he departed in the summer of 2025 to join Hamburg for just £260,000.
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Arsenal didn’t share Albert Sambi Lokonga’s transfer fee because they knew it was low
Though the idea of Arsenal selling Lokonga was not unknown, the player’s final sale price was, with the actual fee being reported by German media.
Now that Lokonga is thriving at Hamburg, the topic of his sale re-emerged when journalist Charles Watts explored the details behind his transfer on the Inside Arsenal podcast.
“He’s [Lokonga] a good player, and Arsenal never announced how much money they got for him,” Watts said before elaborating.
“They [Arsenal] didn’t announce how much money they got for him for a reason. You know, they did not make much money on Sambi Lokonga.
“I get that they were never going to make their money back or even close to it, but they should have made more than they made on him.
“They basically gave away a good young player who is now performing well in the Bundesliga and is still a young player.”
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Watts is still unsure why Arsenal sanctioned such a poor exit, which is the same feeling that Arsenal fans have, who questioned Andrea Berta’s decision to sell Lokonga for the price he did.
Jurgen Klopp couldn’t believe Arsenal loaned Lokonga when the midfielder was sent to gain experience at Luton Town, let alone sell the 26-year-old for less than £1m.
It was a disastrous transfer move, and one that Arsenal will have to live to regret as their former player continues to go from strength to strength after leaving.
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