1 week ago
15
474 updates
©TM/IMAGO
With the season in full swing in the Middle East, Transfermarkt has updated the market values of 474 Saudi Pro League players. While superstar Cristiano Ronaldo remains unchanged at €12 million, there is some movement among the most valuable players in Saudi Arabia’s top division. Despite a drop of €5m from €45m to €40m, Al-Qadsiah’s Mateo Retegui remains the most valuable player in the Saudi Pro League.
“Retegui is the most high-profile recent arrival in Saudi Arabia,” Transfermarkt Area Manager Asia Tiberius Radziejewski said. “After a phenomenal one-season spell at Bergamo, he moved to Saudi Arabia and has made a solid start to the season.” Indeed, Retegui has scored eight goals and recorded one assist in 12 games across all competitions. Despite that, his market value had to drop as he no longer plays in one of Europe’s top leagues.
Still, Retegui remains the most valuable player in Saudi Arabia. That’s because Darwin Núñez, with whom he shared first place before the update, saw his market value drop by €10m from €45m to €35m. “In the same window, Darwin Núñez moved to the Saudi Pro League after a rather disappointing EPL campaign,” Radziejewski said. “Already close to surpassing his goal tally from last season, he has recently been sidelined by minor knocks. Unlike Mateo, who has spoken positively about his host country, Darwin is reportedly unhappy in the Kingdom, with departure rumours beginning to surface.” With a massive fee unlikely, Núñez’s market value had to be reduced more drastically than Retegui’s evaluation.
Saudi Pro League market values: Hernández and Diaby down – João Félix up
Núñez's teammate at Al-Hilal, Theo Hernández, is another former European star to see his market value drop. “Following the personal trend of recent years, Theo’s market value continues to decline,” Radziejewski said. “Although his performances have been excellent, his international standing has dropped, and recent transfer windows suggest there is currently limited transfer value potential for him.” Hernández saw his market value drop by €7m from €35m to €28m.
The same can be said about three other French national team players: Kingsley Coman (Al-Nassr), Moussa Diaby (Al-Ittihad), and Enzo Millot (Al-Ahli). “Coman has been a standout as well in what has been an almost perfect season so far for rival Al-Nassr,” Radziejewski said. But no longer in a top league, Coman’s downgrade by €8m from €30m to €22m was unavoidable. The same is true for Diaby, whose market value dropped by €2m from €30m to €28m. “Unlike Coman, he has not been an option for national team coach Deschamps since shortly before his €60m move to Al-Ittihad. After a phenomenal debut season, he is now struggling alongside his team.” Also down to €28m is Millot. “After being linked with several top clubs, the 23-year-old ultimately decided to move to Al-Ahli. His market value has been slightly adjusted following a slow start to the season, leaving a top-four league.”
Not every former European star has been downgraded, however. After years of downgrades, João Félix saw his market value upgraded (+€5m to €25m) for the first time since March 2022. “He is the top scorer in the league with 11 goals and three assists and is on track to eclipse his breakthrough season from six years ago, before his €127m transfer,” Radziejewski said. The arrival of Félix alongside coach Jorge Jesus may be the final pieces Al-Nassr need to secure their long-awaited first trophy since Ronaldo joined the club. Deployed as a second striker under coach Jesus, his favourite role, he thrives in both the goalscoring and as a playmaker, enjoying considerable freedom while also contributing significantly to ball recoveries. A brilliant signing for both the player and club after seasons of setbacks.”
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).
