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Ollie Watkins could become only the ninth English footballer to play in the Saudi Pro League if Al Hilal complete a deal to sign him from Aston Villa.

Watkins is understood to be open to the transfer, while Villa are close to agreeing the sale of the striker to Al Hilal. It is one of the major transfer stories to follow before the deadline.

There have been numerous transfers from the Premier League to the Saudi Pro League in recent years, though relatively few have involved English players.

In fact, just eight English players have ever played in Saudi Arabia, and only three of them have won senior caps for England.

Given his present standing in the game, Watkins would arguably be the most high-profile of the lot at the time of such a move.

These are the players he would be joining on that list, beginning with the four currently playing in Saudi Arabia, followed by four who have already moved on.

After scoring 36 Premier League goals for Brentford, having previously netted 31 times in the Championship, Ivan Toney left English football in 2024 following four years with the Bees.

For a brief period, Toney looked like one of the forwards England might turn to as a long-term successor to Harry Kane, despite being only three years younger. He sealed his move to Saudi Arabia a month after being included in England’s Euro 2024 squad.

Al-Ahli paid £40m to sign him on a four-year deal.

Across his first two seasons, Toney helped Al-Ahli win successive Asian Champions League titles. His return of 42 goals in his second season, including 32 in the Saudi Pro League, was enough to earn him a place in England’s 2026 World Cup squad, although he played only a limited role at the tournament.

John Buckley made 169 appearances for Blackburn Rovers after progressing through the club’s academy, and he also spent time on loan at Sheffield Wednesday.

After eight seasons in the Championship, he moved to Saudi Arabia in August 2025 to sign for Al-Kholood, a couple of weeks after the club had appointed English head coach Des Buckingham.

Buckley scored on his Saudi Pro League debut and again in his third appearance, but those proved to be his only league goals across 31 appearances in his first season.

Josh Brownhill enjoyed the best campaign of his career in 2024-25, scoring 18 goals as Burnley secured promotion from the Championship.

However, that season also marked the end of his contract with the Clarets. Despite Burnley’s efforts to keep him, he chose not to stay for what would have been his fifth Premier League season.

Instead, Brownhill joined Al Shabab, and he went on to score five goals in 30 matches during his first Saudi Pro League campaign.

Sammy Berry was regarded as a leading talent in the Manchester United academy and went viral after scoring from the halfway line while playing at under-15 level.

He joined Nottingham Forest in 2024 in the hope of breaking into senior football, but he never made it to the first team.

The winger left Forest two years later to begin his senior career with Al-Kholood. In his first half-season in the Saudi Pro League, he made five substitute appearances.

There was significant controversy surrounding Jordan Henderson’s move to Saudi Arabia in 2023.

The transfer allowed one former Liverpool captain to play under another when he joined Steven Gerrard’s Al-Ettifaq, but Henderson faced criticism over his decision to move there.

Having previously been a prominent supporter of LGBT initiatives in the Premier League, Henderson’s decision to move to a country not widely associated with inclusivity upset many people.

His stay lasted only six months. He played 17 Saudi Pro League matches before ending his contract and returning to Europe with Ajax.

Duane Holmes Adams grew up in England and spent time in the academies of Nottingham Forest and Derby County.

After four years in the United States, where he played for Chicago Fire, Atlanta United and an Inter Miami side from before Lionel Messi’s arrival, the midfielder moved to Saudi Arabia in 2022.

He did not make an appearance for Al Shabab, but he did play for Al-Khaleej in the 2023-24 season before dropping into the Saudi second division with Al-Batin the following year.

There was a period when Chris Smalling was among the most in-form English players based abroad after leaving Manchester United for Roma in 2019.

But injuries began to affect him towards the end of his five-year spell in Italy, and Roma allowed him to leave in September 2024.

Al-Fayha signed him, and he rebuilt his fitness in Saudi Arabia, missing only two league matches for his new club after arriving.

The defender then featured in all 34 of their league games in his second season, but he was released when his contract expired.

An Aston Villa academy graduate, Brad Young made his breakthrough in Wales with The New Saints in 2023-24.

His 22-goal campaign attracted the attention of Al-Orobah, but he managed only two goals during his season in Saudi Arabia.

Young then moved elsewhere in the Middle East for a spell in the UAE Pro League before returning to Welsh football.

Andre Gray and Demarai Gray are both Jamaica internationals, though they are not related and were both born in England.

Andre, the former Burnley and Watford striker, joined Al-Riyadh for one season in September 2023.

Coincidentally, on the very same day, winger Demarai left Everton for Al-Ettifaq, where he remained for two years.