Eredivisie market values: Cody Gakpo joins Jurriën Timber at the top

Ajax slump continues  

For the first time in over a year, PSV Eindhoven can lay claim to the most valuable player in the Eredivisie. Following the new Transfermarkt market value update of the Dutch top-flight, Cody Gakpo now joins Jurriën Timber at the top of the list. It was also good news for Gakpo’s teammate Xavi Simons and Feyenoord’s Orkun Kökcü and David Hancko. The biggest losers can be found at Ajax, where some of the highly-anticipated summer transfers have disappointed so far.

Indeed, Gakpo’s rise to the top is the first time a PSV star can call themselves the most valuable player in the league since Donyell Malen was at the club in 2021. The exciting young forward has seen his market value move up from €35 million to €45m, due to his impressive form against the bigger sides this season. “The main concern about Gakpo was that he played excellently against smaller teams, but had yet to show in big matches that he could guide his team to a win,” said Transfermarkt’s Eredivisie expert Kevin Lux. “He was almost invisible in August, when PSV played in the Champions League against Monaco and Rangers, resulting in PSV dropping down to the Europa League. Also in the away game against Arsenal, Gakpo failed to show his potential, but in the home game against the Gunners, the Eindhoven native plagued the Arsenal defence.”

Gakpo was also impressive against league rivals Ajax and Feyenoord, where he picked up four assists and one goal in just two games. “It took away some of the questions about his ability in big games,” Lux said. “But his overall stats are the main reason why Gakpo has been upgraded to the top spot in the Eredivisie.” So far this season the young striker has bagged 30 goal contributions (13 goals and 17 assists), which is more than Neymar, Erling Haaland and Lionel Messi. 

Eredivisie market values: PSV stars thrive – Ajax’s new signings falter 

Another PSV star that has enjoyed a good start to the season is Xavi Simons, who saw his market value more than double from €8m to €18m, due to his eight goals and four assists in 13 matches, some stand-out performances against Arsenal and making the shortlist for Louis van Gaal’s Netherlands squad for the 2022 World Cup. 

The biggest losers from this most recent update can be found at Ajax, where the Dutch champions spent over €100m on new signings in the summer and have failed to benefit much from them. For example, Florian Grillitsch joined the club with a market value of €16m, which would have placed him in the top 10 most valuable players in the league. Having struggled to nail down a starting spot in Alfred Schreuder’s side, the midfielder’s value has dropped to €10m. Which makes the Austrian the biggest loser across the entire Eredivisie in this update. 

Further anguish for Ajax fans can be found in Lucas Ocampos, who joined the club on loan shortly after Antony’s departure and has so far failed to impress. As such, his market value has also decreased from €25m to €20m. However, it’s not all bad news for the Amsterdam outfit, as defensive midfielder and Chelsea transfer target Edson Álvarez continues his impressive form in the Netherlands and has seen his value rise €5m to €35m. Similarly, following an impressive Champions League group stage which saw the striker bag four goals and two assists, Mohammed Kudus has seen his value increase by a further €5m to €25m. 

And last, but certainly not least, there is also a special mention for Feyenoord star Kökcü, who saw his marekt value rise from €22m to €27m due to his growing importance to Arne Slot’s side. “Kökcü steps up whenever Feyenoord need him”, Lux said. “Whenever his team is struggling in a game, he puts heart in the match and gives the team the energy it needs to push victory over the line.” Despite only being 21 years of age, Kökcü has seven goals and assists in 13 games for the club and his new market value places him in the top five most valuable players in the Dutch top-flight. 

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