Signing a player during the transfer window is no longer an easy task in the modern game. While the club’s popularity and potential to win titles were once the requirements for a player to consider joining them, high wages and ridiculously inflated transfer fees have become the primary factors for a transfer to take place.
While a number of players have been sold at prices similar to their actual market worth, there are a few players who have commanded much higher prices because of various factors such as potential, age and contract lengths.
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We look at 10 such players who saw their market value jump by more than €25m since 1 January 2015.
#10 Anthony Martial – €25m increase to €30m
When Manchester United let go of Robin van Persie, Javier Hernandez and opted not to extend Radamel Falcao’s loan, the club were desperately short of strikers. With Wayne Rooney the only player capable of leading the line, they dipped into the transfer market and identified AS Monaco’s 19-year-old Anthony Martial.
Strikers usually command the highest transfer fee in the market and Monaco milked United for every penny in what was at first believed to be a £36 million fee. That soon turned out to be just his base price with the fee set to rise up to as much as £60m including add-ons and bonuses for various achievements.
Nevertheless, the investment could prove to be fruitful for the Red Devils in the long run. The Frenchman has already scored 13 goals this season in spite of playing in various positions across the front three. His direct style and pace has caused nightmares for opponents when he cuts in from the flank and he has popped up with crucial goals - the most memorable being his goal on debut against Liverpool.
#9 Thomas Müller – €25m increase to €75m
The German forward was ever-present in the media’s transfer rumour mills last summer with many reports suggesting that Louis van Gaal was chasing the Bayern Munich forward to add some world class quality to his attacking lineup. But Muller himself came out and quashed all rumours.
“I feel well at Bayern and my contract runs till 2019. There is nothing more to say about these speculations.” – Muller last summer.
The 26-year-old is not one to be enticed by high wages or the allure of the Premier League. A Bavarian through and through, it will take more than just that to prise him away from the Allianz Arena.
Apart from scoring 9 goals for Germany in the Euro 2016 qualifiers, he has also scored 31 goals for Die Roten in all competitions this season, making him a valuable asset to the club who have dominated the Bundesliga in the last four seasons.
#8 Harry Kane – €27m increase to €30m
Back at the start of the 2014/15 season, very few people knew who Harry Kane was. Behind the likes of Emmanuel Adebayor and Roberto Soldado in the pecking order at Tottenham Hotspur, the youngster burst into fame in the second half of the season and 5 goals short of taking home the Premier League Golden Boot.
This season, he’s in the driving seat as he leads the goalscoring charts with four games to go. The English striker’s rise has been remarkable and even managed to score just 79 seconds into his England debut.
A sure-shot pick for the Euro 2016 squad, Kane has shown he is no one-season wonder and clubs will line up for his services. But judging by Spurs’ recent rise, he may just stay put and play under Mauricio Pochettino.
#7 Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – €28m increase to €45m
One of the fastest strikers in the world today, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has had a season to remember in 2015/16. With 37 goals scored in all competitions, he has shown no signs of stopping. A huge threat on counter-attacks, playing a high line against Dortmund with the Gabon striker leading the line is a suicidal move.
“He plays to become a league top scorer, to get a hand on a cup or championship trophy.” – Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel
Aubameyang has also been a target for a number of clubs. Reports linked him with a winter move away from Dortmund but he stayed put. A summer move, however, has not been ruled out. In fact, Aubameyang himself has admitted he has dreams of playing for Real Madrid.
“My childhood dream was to play for Real Madrid. Before he (his grandfather) died two years ago I promised him that one day I would play for Real Madrid,” Aubameyang had said.
#6 Raheem Sterling – €30m increase to €50m
Disillusioned with how things were going at Liverpool under Brendan Rodgers, Sterling set his sights on a move to Manchester City and got his wish last summer. The Sky Blues were only too happy to shell out £49m to get not only a bright, young player but also one who was homegrown.
The 21-year-old has not had the best of seasons. Injuries have limited him to just 22 starts; which explains the drop in his market value after joining.
But a strong finish to the season and a good performance in Euro 2016 could see him fire City to a legitimate title challenge.
#5 Antoine Griezmann – €30m increase to €60m
If Antoine Griezmann was a star at Real Sociedad in his final season at the club, he has become much more than that under Diego Simeone at Atletico Madrid. For a change, Karim Benzema wasn’t the only French forward grabbing headlines in Europe.
With more than 50 goals for the club since joining them last season, the club are well set for the future if they manage to hold on to him. And why wouldn’t he stay? Simeone has led them to a position where they can challenge for the Liga title and Champions League yet again.
Griezmann is also a hard worker who works off the ball to win it back – the ethos of the Rojiblancos’ tactics. Playing a 4-4-2 formation, Griezmann ahs partnered with Fernando Torres and Luciano Vietto up front. But there’s no question as to which one makes the team sheet first – the man who grabbed a brace to eliminate the defending champions from the Champions League.
#4 Neymar – €30m increase to €100m
A lot was expected of young Neymar when it was confirmed that Lionel Messi would miss a few weeks of the season due to a knee injury. And step up he did as the Argentine forward was hardly missed. So much so that his return in the Clasico was only a formality after Neymar and Luis Suarez had destroyed the Blancos at the Bernabeu.
With 21 goals in La Liga so far, he may not be the highest goalscorer, but he has been one of the most effective. Based on stats, WhoScored rates him as the best in the league with Messi a very close second.
The Brazilian forward was signed on as a potential replacement to Messi in the long run. So far, he is ahead of both Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in the goalscoring charts when they were his age. Although a temporary dip in form has been an issue, it is something that has affected the whole side.
#3 Luis Suarez – €30m increase to €100m
The third member of the famed trio of MSN completed the attacking lineup that dominated both Spanish and European football last season as Barcelona swept all before them aside to win a treble. 122 goals from three players was no mean feat.
And he has only leveled up this season with 45 goals so far this season – already a massive 20 goals more than last season’s count (partly due to the ban that saw him miss the first couple of months of the season).
In Messi’s absence, he provided the Catalan club not only goals but a leadership figure in attack to climb up the table and also progress to the Champions League knockouts without any major hiccups.
Will he score 50 this season? He has six games (including the Copa del Rey final) to do so.
#2 Paulo Dybala – €33.5m increase to €40m
After a breakthrough season with Palermo in 2014/15 where he scored 13 goals, clubs lined up for his services. But Juventus stepped in with a €32m offer and the young Argentine forward was on his way to Turin.
Dybala started well with Juventus even though the club struggled in the first few weeks of the season. However, his best game was arguably the performance against Udinese in the 4-0 win in Serie A after playing just 66 minutes. He was involved in all four goals with two goals and two assists.
As they kept pace with Napoli and eventually leapfrogged them in the table, the Old Lady have now taken a six-point lead with a game in hand. In spite of having the likes of Mario Mandzukic and Alvaro Morata, it is the 22-year-old who leads the club’s goalscoring charts this season with 14 goals and 8 assists.
#1 Kevin De Bruyne – €40m increase to €60m
When Manchester City broke their club transfer record twice in the same summer, there was no doubt as to who the bigger star was. While Raheem Sterling was looked at as an acquisition for the future, Kevin De Bruyne was expected to slot straight into the lineup and deliver.
The 24-year-old “Chelsea reject” had stormed to the top of the assists chart in the Bundesliga during his time with Wolfsburg and clubs were starting to take notice of the prodigious Belgian talent. And soon, City came in with an offer they simply could not refuse.
With a point to prove in the Premier League, De Bruyne set about doing just that. 15 goals and 9 assists in all competitions in spite of missing a crucial period of the season due to a knee injury prove City have done good business. After all, he did score the crucial goal to knock the all-conquering PSG out of the Champions League.
Market Value stats taken from TransferMarkt
