SALARYSPORT
★ 0
MEISTRILIIGA · DEFENDERS · 2026/27

Highest paid Meistriliiga defenders

Modou Tambedou is the best-paid defender in the Meistriliiga, on £484 a week at Nõmme Kalju FC, or £25,168 a year. Nikita Baranov is next on £318 at Paide Linnameeskond. We hold wages for 70 Meistriliiga defenders in 2026/27.

BEST PAID £484
AVERAGE WAGE £152
SHARE OF WAGE BILL25%
TOP 10 A WEEK £3k
WAGES HELD70

The 50 best-paid Meistriliiga defenders

Weekly wage, 2026/27. A player who plays in two areas of the pitch is on both lists, at the full wage.

The best-paid defenders in the Meistriliiga in 2026/27, ranked by weekly wage, with the yearly wage, club, age, position and nationality.
# PLAYER WEEKLY YEARLY CLUB AGE POSITION NATION
1 Modou Tambedou £484£484 £25,168£25k Nõmme Kalju FC 22 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Senegal
2 Nikita Baranov £318£318 £16,536£17k Paide Linnameeskond 32 Centre-back Estonia
3 Michael Lilander £294£294 £15,288£15k Paide Linnameeskond 28 Full-back Estonia
4 Kauã Davi £273£273 £14,196£14k FCI Levadia Tallinn 21 Centre-back Brazil
5 Tanel Tammik £252£252 £13,104£13k FCI Levadia Tallinn 23 Centre-back Estonia
6 Hindrek Ojamaa £240£240 £12,480£12k Paide Linnameeskond 30 Right-back Estonia
7 Gerdo Juhkam £230£230 £11,960£12k Paide Linnameeskond 31 Centre-back Estonia
8 Rasmus Peetson £219£219 £11,388£11k FCI Levadia Tallinn 30 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Estonia
9 Aleksandr Nikolajev £219£219 £11,388£11k Nõmme Kalju FC 22 Left-back Estonia
10 Kevin Aloe £210£210 £10,920£11k Pärnu JK Vaprus 30 Left-back Estonia
11 Edgar Tur £190£190 £9,880£10k Paide Linnameeskond 28 Right-back, right midfielder Estonia
12 Marco Lukka £180£180 £9,360£9k FC Kuressaare 28 Centre-back Estonia
13 Roko Vukušić £176£176 £9,152£9k Nõmme Kalju FC 21 Centre-back Croatia
14 Artjom Skinjov £166£166 £8,632£9k JK Narva Trans 29 Left-back Estonia
15 Marko Lipp £158£158 £8,216£8k Pärnu JK Vaprus 26 Centre-back Estonia
16 Shalva Burjanadze £145£145 £7,540£8k JK Narva Trans 26 Centre-back Georgia
17 Mihhail Kolobov £143£143 £7,436£7k FC Flora Tallinn 20 Centre-back Estonia
18 Andreas Vaher £143£143 £7,436£7k FC Flora Tallinn 21 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Estonia
19 Uku Kõrre £143£143 £7,436£7k Nõmme Kalju FC 25 Defender Estonia
20 Maksim Podholjuzin £136£136 £7,072£7k Nõmme Kalju FC 32 Centre-back Estonia
21 Cristian Campagna £129£129 £6,708£7k JK Narva Trans 23 Centre-back Canada
22 Markkus Seppik £123£123 £6,396£6k Pärnu JK Vaprus 24 Centre-back Estonia
23 Robert Veering £122£122 £6,344£6k FC Flora Tallinn 19 Centre-back Estonia
24 Victor Hugo £106£106 £5,512£6k Paide Linnameeskond 23 Centre-back Brazil
25 Sander Tovstik £100£100 £5,200£5k FC Flora Tallinn 19 Left-back Estonia
26 Oscar Pihela £100£100 £5,200£5k FC Flora Tallinn 18 Centre-back Estonia
27 Oleg Gonsevich £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Narva Trans 20 Right-back Russia
28 Eriks Santos £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Narva Trans 29 Centre-back Brazil
29 Harvey Rowe £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Narva Trans 21 Centre-back England
30 Valeri Shantenkov £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Narva Trans 18 Centre-back Estonia
31 Denis Sibul £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Narva Trans 19 Centre-back Estonia
32 Murad Velijev £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Narva Trans 23 Right wing-back, right winger Azerbaijan
33 Aleksandr Ivanjušin £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Narva Trans 29 Right-back Estonia
34 Aleksander Filatov £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Narva Trans 21 Left-back, defensive midfielder Estonia
35 Marius Vister £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Tammeka Tartu 21 Left-back Estonia
36 Laurits Õunpuu £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Tammeka Tartu 19 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Estonia
37 Rasmus Kallas £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Tammeka Tartu 21 Centre-back Estonia
38 Kevin Anderson £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Tammeka Tartu 31 Centre-back Estonia
39 Georg Lani £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Tammeka Tartu 21 Left-back Estonia
40 Mairo Miil £100£100 £5,200£5k JK Tammeka Tartu 25 Centre-back Estonia
41 Danylo Mashchenko £100£100 £5,200£5k Nõmme Kalju FC 22 Defender Ukraine
42 Alex Boronilštšikov £100£100 £5,200£5k Nõmme Kalju FC 19 Left-back Estonia
43 Reinhard Reimaa £77£77 £4,004£4k Harju JK Laagri 26 Right-back, central midfielder Estonia
44 Kaspar Laur £77£77 £4,004£4k Harju JK Laagri 25 Centre-back Estonia
45 Sigvard Suppi £74£74 £3,848£4k Harju JK Laagri 19 Defender Estonia
46 Nourdine Camara £74£74 £3,848£4k Harju JK Laagri 18 Centre-back Germany
47 Kirill Aleksandr Antonov £74£74 £3,848£4k Harju JK Laagri 22 Left-back Estonia
48 Enriko Kajari £74£74 £3,848£4k Harju JK Laagri 18 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Estonia
49 Hugo Palutaja £72£72 £3,744£4k Harju JK Laagri 21 Full-back Estonia
50 Rasmus Saar £63£63 £3,276£3k FC Kuressaare 25 Right-back, right winger Estonia

What each position earns in the Meistriliiga

Average weekly wage of the players aged 22 or over we hold a wage for

Goalkeepers £160 Defenders £152 Midfielders £161 Attackers £242

Defenders take 25% of what the Meistriliiga pays its players of that age. The four shares add up to the whole bill, because a player who plays in two areas gives half the wage to each.

The clubs that pay their defenders the most

Every defender wage we hold at each Meistriliiga club, added together, a week

Paide Linnameeskond £1,378
Nõmme Kalju FC £1,358
JK Narva Trans £1,240
Harju JK Laagri £887
FCI Levadia Tallinn £744
JK Tammeka Tartu £660
Pärnu JK Vaprus £612
FC Flora Tallinn £608
FC Kuressaare £343
JK Tallinna Kalev £113

Paide Linnameeskond pay 6 defenders £1,378 a week between them, and Nikita Baranov takes 23% of it.

The best-paid defender at every Meistriliiga club

10 clubs, 2026/27, with where each ranks among the league's defenders

Each Meistriliiga club's best-paid defender in 2026/27, the weekly wage, and that player's rank among every defender in the league.
CLUB PLAYER WEEKLY RANK
Nõmme Kalju FC Modou Tambedou £484£484 1
Paide Linnameeskond Nikita Baranov £318£318 2
FCI Levadia Tallinn Kauã Davi £273£273 4
Pärnu JK Vaprus Kevin Aloe £210£210 10
FC Kuressaare Marco Lukka £180£180 12
JK Narva Trans Artjom Skinjov £166£166 14
FC Flora Tallinn Mihhail Kolobov £143£143 17
JK Tammeka Tartu Marius Vister £100£100 35
Harju JK Laagri Reinhard Reimaa £77£77 43
JK Tallinna Kalev Abiola Bamijoko £57£57 55

The best-paid defender in every men's league

43 leagues, ordered by their best-paid defender. The Meistriliiga ranks 43rd.

The best-paid defender in each men's league we rank defenders in, the weekly wage, and the league's average defender wage over players aged 22 or over.
LEAGUE BEST PAID WEEKLY AVERAGE
Saudi Pro League Kalidou Koulibaly £497,000£497k £40,351£40k
Premier League Virgil van Dijk £350,000£350k £69,840£70k
Bundesliga Dayot Upamecano £331,000£331k £42,331£42k
Ligue 1 Lucas Hernández £316,000£316k £27,702£28k
La Liga João Cancelo £249,000£249k £37,418£37k
Serie A John Stones £200,000£200k £36,415£36k
Süper Lig Milan Škriniar £166,000£166k £15,078£15k
Superleague Greece Stefan de Vrij £117,000£117k £10,420£10k
Championship Kieran Trippier £115,000£115k £18,082£18k
Eredivisie Lutsharel Geertruida £99,000£99k £8,088£8k
Major League Soccer Jordi Alba £85,000£85k £7,805£8k
Scottish Premiership Ben Godfrey £80,000£80k £5,860£6k
Primeira Liga Jakub Kiwior £58,000£58k £5,910£6k
La Liga 2 David López £58,000£58k £4,473£4k
Russian Premier League Matheus Reis £57,000£57k £12,772£13k
Brasileirão Série A Guillermo Maripán £53,000£53k £8,284£8k
Belgian Pro League Matteo Dams £49,000£49k £5,133£5k
League One Wes Morgan £46,000£46k £5,700£6k
2. Bundesliga Yannick Gerhardt £42,000£42k £8,296£8k
Super Liga Nicolás Otamendi £41,000£41k £3,253£3k
Danish Superliga Rasmus Kristensen £39,000£39k £5,418£5k
Ekstraklasa Attila Szalai £36,000£36k £2,883£3k
Serie B Federico Baschirotto £33,000£33k £6,876£7k
Czech First League David Jurásek £29,000£29k £1,857£2k
Chinese Super League Matheus Jussa (Matheus Isaias dos Santos) £27,000£27k £4,788£5k
Liga MX Kenedy £25,000£25k £6,926£7k
Austrian Bundesliga Stefan Lainer £21,000£21k £4,095£4k
Ligue 2 Frédéric Guilbert £18,000£18k £4,556£5k
J1 League Gotoku Sakai £15,000£15k £3,457£3k
Croatian First League Ronaël Pierre-Gabriel £15,000£15k £2,078£2k
Thai League Erik Sviatchenko £14,000£14k £2,172£2k
Eliteserien Hrannar Snær Magnússon £13,000£13k £1,630£2k
Belgian Challenger Pro League Thomas Foket £8,600£9k £1,529£2k
League Two Alfie Dorrington £8,500£9k £2,352£2k
Categoría Primera A Frank Fabra £8,300£8k £3,994£4k
Scottish Championship Leon King £8,000£8k £952£952
A-League Jacob Farrell £6,100£6k £1,262£1k
Indian Super League Anwar Ali £4,500£5k £595£595
National League Jake Rooney £4,100£4k £1,165£1k
I-League Jamie McCart £4,100£4k £547£547
Veikkausliiga Alfie Cicale £2,500£3k £646£646
Canadian Premier League Curtis Ofori £1,400£1k £443£443
Meistriliiga Modou Tambedou £484£484 £152£152

Frequently asked questions

Who is the highest paid defender in the Meistriliiga?

Modou Tambedou of Nõmme Kalju FC, on £484 a week in 2026/27, or £25,168 a year. Nikita Baranov of Paide Linnameeskond is second on £318 a week.

How much do Meistriliiga defenders earn?

The average Meistriliiga defender aged 22 or over earns £152 a week, and the median one £129. Defenders take 25% of what the Meistriliiga pays its players of that age.

Which Meistriliiga club pays its defenders the most?

Paide Linnameeskond, £1,378 a week across the 6 defenders we hold a wage for, led by Nikita Baranov on £318.

Who is the highest paid defender in football?

Of the 43 men's leagues we rank defenders in, the best-paid is Kalidou Koulibaly of Al-Hilal Saudi Football Club in the Saudi Pro League, on £497,000 a week. The best-paid in the Meistriliiga ranks 43rd of the 43 leagues on that measure.

Where to next

The same Meistriliiga squads, cut a different way

See the highest paid Meistriliiga players in every position, the best-paid player at every club, what Meistriliiga players are paid at every age, or the Meistriliiga wage bill, club by club.