Overall all-time high
Transfermarkt has reassessed the market values of around 40% of the players in the Premier League in an intermediary update, following the closure of the summer transfer window. After a record-breaking window which saw the richest league in the world spend more money than ever and reach new heights in terms of the overall league’s value, the squads of the 20 top-flight clubs now stand at a remarkable €9.86 billion, which is €130m more than before the COVID pandemic.
New signings such as Manchester United winger Antony, Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana and Newcastle’s record transfer Alexander Isak were more than capable of compensating for some notable downgrades in market values for the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Leicester City defender Çağlar Söyüncü and many more. Since the last market value update of the league, the division has seen an increase of around €600m in market value.
Haaland, Antony & Co. – The most valuable Premier League players
New market values: Antony now on a par with Neymar and Sancho
A notable size of that increase – no less than €40m – went to the most expensive summer signing, Antony, who arrived from Ajax for a reported fee of €95m and is now upgraded to €75m. “The Brazilian gets the biggest upgrade and is now on a par with team-mate Jadon Sancho and compatriot Neymar,” Transfermarkt UK Area Manager Daniel Busch said. “Since he has not yet impressed in a top league for long periods of time and Ajax were able to get the absolute maximum out of the sale of Erik Ten Hag’s dream player, Antony’s market value will not rise to the full fee – we await his further development.”
This logic also applies to other Man Utd summer signings Lisandro Martínez (+€18m to €50m) and Casemiro (+€10m to €50m), who were signed for fees of €57m and €71m respectively. The Red Devils wanted these players and put what was needed on the table – but that doesn’t mean that the market value is increasing at the same pace.
Similarly, Chelsea spent more money than any other club in the summer window signing players like Fofana (+€20m to €65m) and Marc Cucurella (+€27m to €55m), which in turn made a total of €146m for Leicester and Brighton respectively. “After Chelsea made Fofana the fourth most expensive central defender in history, he also rose to the top tier with his new market value. For the time being, the young Frenchman has only just made it in among the most valuable defenders and now has to justify the high price in order to take the next step – hopefully he will be spared major injuries in the process,” added Busch.
The biggest winners of the Premier League update (September 2022)
Ronaldo gets downgraded: “No longer desirable for top clubs”
While high transfer fees lead to hikes in market values in some cases, lack of interest and dissatisfied coaches can cause the market value to plummet. For example, with Ronaldo, who at the age of 37 is devalued from €30m to €20m. “The developments in the summer have shown that Ronaldo is no longer desirable for top clubs, which is not least due to his enormous salary,” Busch said. “At Man Utd he missed large parts of the pre-season and has only played a minor role under coach Ten Hag so far.” The former Ballon d’Or winner has regularly found himself on the bench alongside Harry Maguire (-€8m to €30m) and Luke Shaw (-€8m to €30m), who are also among the big losers of the update.
The biggest loser in the Premier League goes to Söyüncü, who has fallen out of favour with Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers and has been devalued from €40m to €28m. “In the last league game, the Turkish international was not even in the squad despite Fofana’s departure,” Busch said. “Although his contract expires at the end of the season, there was hardly any interest from top clubs in the summer and a return to Turkey was the only notable transfer rumour.” There was also a significant downgrade for fellow Leicester stars Wilfred Ndidi (-€10m to €50m) and Youri Tielemans (-€10m to €45m), confirming that the Foxes overall squad value has dropped by €24.2m. Which is the biggest devaluation in the division.
The biggest losers of the Premier League update (September 2022)
In contrast, Southampton have picked up the biggest increase in squad market value after seeing their overall value go up by €73.2m to €316m, with their summer signings focusing on young players with plenty of potential. The Saints signed Gavin Bazunu (+€10m to €15m), Juan Larios (starting at €5m) and Roméo Lavia (+€23m to €25m) for €33.3m from the Manchester City youth ranks. Young German defender Armel Bella-Kotchap (+€6m to €16m) is another one of the winners.
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).
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