Eredivisie market values: Malik Tillman and PSV pass Feyenoord - Santiago Gimenez drops

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The market value of the Eredivisie continues to rise—even though two of the four most valuable players are being downgraded. There were 135 updates as part of the March update, and 11 players from league leaders PSV Eindhoven were among the winners. PSV saw their squad value increase by €36 million to €318.6m, enough to inch past last year’s Eredivisie winner Feyenoord, who saw their squad value increase from €305m to €313m. At Ajax, too, the squad value continues to tick upwards after a very poor start to the campaign. The Amsterdam club saw its squad value increase by €15.5m to €219.3m. 

One of the main reasons for a significant upgrade at PSV is US men’s national team player Malik Tillman. On loan from Bayern Munich, Tillman saw his market value increase by €5m to €17m. “Despite the fact that head coach Peter Bosz likes to rotate his squad, Tillman almost always plays,” Data Administrator Netherlands Jesper Siereveld said. “He also showed his potential in big games against Feyenoord and Dortmund in the Champions League. He still needs to develop and needs to improve his decision-making. But you can see what could be possible if he keeps developing and it will be fascinating to see where he will play next season. PSV have an option to make the deal permanent for €12.5m, which Bayern can deactivate for €3m, but it remains unclear whether they will activate their option and whether Tillman wants to stay.” 

Tillman aside, his USMNT colleague Sergiño Dest (+€4m to €22m), defender Olivier Boscagli (+€7m to €27m), and Ismael Saibari (+€6m to €16m) are among the big winners at PSV. New in the Eredivisie top five is PSV midfielder Joey Veerman, whose market value increased from €24m to €32m. 

Market Value

J. Veerman Central Midfield

€32.00m

Gimenez remains first despite drop – Ajax trend backup

Veerman draws level with Feyenoord defender Lutsharel Geertruida (-€3m to €32m). Geertruida like top striker Santiago Gimenez (-€5m to €45m) is being dowgraded. Transfermarkt Area Manager Netherlands Kevin Lux explains the downgrade for the once most valuable Mexican in the history of Transfermarkt:

“We were in doubt whether we should downgrade Gimenez,” Lux said. “His performances recently aren't what you may expect from a player valued at €50m, but he still might bring in that kind of money when the transfer window opens again this summer. He is slumping right now, but he has proved himself earlier this season and is still one of the more sought-after attackers in Europe. We didn't want to downgrade and upgrade him again next update because the rumour mill connects him to a big transfer, creating a yoyo-effect. Ultimately, the poor performances outweighed any concerns about a possible downgrade.” The same applies to Alkmaar striker Vangelis Pavlidis (-€3m to €22m). 

Market Value

S. Gimenez Centre-Forward

€45.00m

Although Ajax are still 13 points behind third place, they have managed to stabilize their performances somewhat and, as a result, its squad value. One of the main reasons for the uptick in performances has been Brian Brobbey. With a market value increase of €10m to €25m, Brobbey is one of the big winners of the update. “Brobbey currently has sixteen goals behind his name this season, 12 of which he scored since the beginning of December,” Lux said. "If we compare that to the eight scored by Pavlidis and five by Gimenez in the same time period, it is clear that the Ajax star is currently the hottest striker in the Netherlands. He has received plenty of praise from the experts whenever there are discussions on who will lead the line for the Netherlands at the Euros. Combine that with plenty of interest from abroad, and you can justify his market value increase.” 

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).