22 players updated
The 2021 Copa América finally saw Lionel Messi lift his first major international trophy with Argentina. The superstar was voted the best player of the tournament and also shared the Golden Boot with Colombian striker Luis Díaz.
Romero & Co. – All Copa América updates
Unlike Messi, his value remains unchanged, Díaz (+€7m to €25m) was among the 22 players that saw their market value updated as part of the Transfermarkt Copa América update. Among those players that have seen their market value improve—there have been no downgrades—six are from Copa winners Argentina—in comparison, only one Brazilian, Lucas Paquetá (+€5m to €35m), saw his value upgraded.
The two biggest winners were Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez and Atalanta defender Cristian Romero (both +€5m to €35m). Martínez was Argentina’s hero in the final shootout against rivals Brazil and is now the seventh most valuable goalkeeper in the world. Romero, in the meantime, joins the long list of Atalanta players that had a fantastic tournament this summer. Romero is not only the most valuable Argentine center-back but now also ranks among the 25 most valuable central defenders in the world.
Another player that stood out for Argentina was Rodrigo de Paul. The playmaker started the tournament as a Udinese player, but negotiations with Atlético Madrid were ongoing throughout the Copa América. The transfer was finally announced on July 12. Atlético have paid €35 million for the 27-year-old. That deal was already below market value. Despite the lower fee, Transfermarkt has taken his strong performances at the Copa into account and upgraded de Paul to €40 million. The Argentine will now have to confirm his new market value in Spain.
Copa América 2021 update: Market value winners
Transfer target Hincapié up – FM discovery Brereton in the spotlight
Two teams that were eliminated in the quarterfinals also had players stand out. Four Ecuadorians, including Villarreal winger Pervis Estupiñán (+€3m to €15m) and center-back Piero Hincapié (+€3m to €8m) used the tournament to put themselves in the shopping window. Hincapié, who ended the Copa with a red card ejection in the 3-0 defeat to Argentina, has been linked to numerous European teams. Expect the 19-year-old Atlético Talleres defender to be on the move this summer.
Another player that left the tournament at the quarterfinal stage was British-born Blackburn Rovers center-forward Ben Brereton. A former England youth international, Brereton’s eligibility to Chile was discovered by a Football Manager scout. “I’ve done [scouting] for Football Manager now for probably about 10 years. Rovers did a feature in the programme called ‘A to Z,’” Blackburn Rovers’ FM21 scout Mark Hitch said in an interview with the Daily Star. “Brereton was on it, and he said, ‘Technically, I’m eligible for Chile. My mother is Chilean.'”
Hitch included Chile in Brereton’s FM profile. Football Manager streamer @ChileanToon then discovered Brereton’s dual-nationality and then set things in motion to have the player called up by Chile. Brereton has used the opportunity. Playing in all five games at the Copa, the 22-year-old scored one goal and one assist at the tournament and has seen his market value increase by €2 million to now €7 million.
How Transfermarkt market values work
The Transfermarkt market values are calculated, taking into account various pricing models. A major factor is the Transfermarkt community, whose members discuss and evaluate player market values in detail. In general, the Transfermarkt market values are not to be equated with transfer fees. The goal is not to predict a price but an expected value of a player in a free market. Both individual transfer modalities and situational conditions are relevant in determining market values. Examples of this are listed below. Transfermarkt does not use an algorithm (you can find the detailed market value definition here).
