On Thursday, Transfermarkt.fr has updated the market values of 548 Ligue 1 players. One of the biggest winners of the market value is LOSC Lille‘s Canadian striker Jonathan David. The 21-year-old sees his market value improve by 42.9% from €35 million to now €50 million, making him the second most valuable Canadian men’s national team player behind Alphonso Davies. The increase in market value also means that David, together with American Christian Pulisic, is now the second most valuable player in Concacaf. Davies remains first in that ranking (overview).
The increase in David’s market value is only consequential. The forward has been a key player both for his club Lille and the Canadian men’s national team, where David is the second biggest star behind Davies. David has scored three goals and two assists in the final stage of Concacaf World Cup qualifying and is a big reason why Canada currently is first in the Octagonal ahead of the United States and Mexico.
On a club level, David has also impressed. “David’s last season was okay,” Transfermarkt Area Manager France Ronan Caroff said. “Lille’s fans had to wait until November for him to score his first goal. For Lille, he only scored two of his 13 goals last season in 2020.” David’s slow start meant that many journalists and fans had doubts about whether David could justify the €27 million the club paid to Gent to secure the striker.
Davies, David, Larin & Co.: The most valuable CanMNT players
25. Russell Teibert – Vancouver Whitecaps – €1 million
Jonathan David: “Clear offensive leader” for Lille – “Big clubs will try to sign him” in the summer
There are no more doubts now. “David has almost reached his goal total from last season already,” Caroff said. The Canadian has scored 11 goals in 18 Ligue 1 games and added another three goals in six Champions League games. Enough to see his club reach the round of 16 of the UCL. “He is their clear offensive leader in a team that is still struggling to find consistency. David, however, has improved significantly and is a contender to win the golden boot.” But what will happen at the end of the season? “In the summer, big clubs will try to sign him, but he is under contract until 2025, which means Lille are in control,” Caroff concluded.
David & Co. – The most valuable Ligue 1 players
30 Kevin Volland – AS Monaco – new market value: €22M (-€8M)
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).
