Ligue 1 update
Transfermarkt.fr has given Ligue 1 an intermediary update. 135 players were updated including the biggest winner Hugo Ekitike. Among the losers was Olympique Lyon’s winter signing Tanguy Ndombélé. After his disappointing departure from Tottenham suffers his third downgrade in a row. Players on the ascend are predominantly young players, who are being scouted by clubs in top leagues, or—as is the case for Eintracht Frankfurt signing Randal Kolo Muani—have already secured a high profile summer transfer.
“A few people have had their doubts on whether Frankfurt is the right next step for him,” Transfermarkt Area Manager France Ronan Caroff said when asked about FC Nantes’ Kolo Muani. “I think, however, that they are an ideal choice for him to develop his talent and perhaps discover a new style of football.”
The future Frankfurt forward has seen his market value increase by 25%. “Kolo Muani has been a symbol for Nantes’ revival,” Caroff said. “The team has found consistency and is now playing for a position in the Conference League. Kolo Muani was not at all influenced by his contract situation.” With 11 goals and five assists in 32 games, the U21 international is the top scorer for Nantes. His market value increased by €3 million to now €15 million.
Bamba, Mbappé & Co. – The most valuable Ligue 1 players
Market values Ligue 1: Ekitie among winners – Lukeba increases by 500%
Talents Ekitike (Stade Reims) and Castello Lukeba (Lyon) saw the biggest increases in their respective market values. 19-year-old Ekitike, who almost joined Newcastle United in January and has been heavily scouted by Borussia Dortmund saw the biggest market value increase of all players. The forward has scored ten competitive goals this season and saw his market value increase by €14 million to €20 million. Only 40 players in Ligue 1 have a market value of €20 million or more.
Lukeba is still somewhat away from that benchmark. But the 19-year-old center-back makes the biggest relative jump in market value. Lukeba started the season with the second team but has since become a permanent fixture for OL in Ligue 1 but also in Europe. His market value increased by 500% from €2.5 million to now €15 million. The two are not the only talents to see their market value increase. Stade Rennais defender Warmed Omari saw his market value increase from €3.5 million to €8 million. “He is one of the discoveries of the season in Ligue 1 and has banished new signing Loïc Badé (-€2m to €14m) to the bench.”
PSG wunderkind duo Simons and Michut double value – Weah drops
Two Paris Saint-Germain talents also saw their market values increase. Xavi Simons (from €1.5m to €3m) and Edouard Michut (from €1m to €2m) saw their market value double. “Around January and February, both Simons and Michut got a taste of Ligue 1 football with PSG,” Caroff said. “Simons managed four games and one start (102 minutes in total) and Michut has played 22 minutes. Both players also saw playing time in the cup against fourth and fifth tier opposition where they could show some of their potential.”
While young stars saw their market value increase, several established names of France’s first division saw their market value adjusted downward. One example is Lyon returnee Ndombélé. “His loan was supposed to give Olympique a fresh win but his performances have been less than average,” Caroff said about Ndombélé’s situation. Both Maxence Caqueret (+€3m to €20m) and Houssem Aouar (-€2m to €30m) have been preferred in midfield. “Perhaps he can return the trend until the end of the season but right now it is uncertain whether his loan from Tottenham made any sense for the player.” Lyon have the option to make the transfer permanent for €45 million.
Lille and US men’s national team striker Timothy Weah also saw his market value drop. “Weah has had no goal participation in 2022 yet,” Caroff said. “Despite getting some starts on the right-wing this is a very difficult period for Weah and it has impacted his market value. This is his first downgrade since the COVID-19 update in April 2020.” Weah’s market value drops from €15 million to €13 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).
Homepage
