Hartel & Teuchert are increasing
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A week after the MLS Cup final in Los Angeles, Transfermarkt updated the market values of 855 players. Inter Miami’s superstar Lionel Messi is no longer alone at the top of the ranking: Riqui Puig, who has received a significant upgrade after scoring 31 times in 36 games for champions LA Galaxy, is drawing level with the Argentine – both professionals are now valued at 20 million euros.
“With 30 goals in 19 games, Messi remains the best player in the league,” confirms Transfermarkt’s data administrator North America Dominic Becker. “But time has also taken its toll on the best footballer in history. For this reason, we had to adjust its market value based on age.” This will fall by 5 million to 20 million euros as a result of the update. Despite the demotion, Messi remains the most valuable over-34 player in the world, €5 million ahead of Barça striker Robert Lewandowski and his eternal rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
Market values MLS: Many upgrades at champions LA Galaxy
From now on, Messi will share the market value throne with Puig from the newly crowned champions. “Puig has taken LA Galaxy to new heights,” says Becker. “His performances were crucial to the club winning the MLS Cup for the first time in ten years. His technical skills, his eye for teammates and his finishing skills are unparalleled in the league. If he regains this form after his cruciate ligament injury, it will only be a matter of time before he returns to a top 5 league.”
The former Barça talent sustained the injury 20 minutes before the end of the Western Conference final. Nevertheless, the Spaniard then provided the game-winning assist against Seattle. The fact that Galaxy won the final without the 25-year-old is testament to the quality and depth of the squad, which also includes Joseph Paintsil (+500,000 to 10 million), Dejan Joveljic (+1.5 to 6.5 million). ) and Gabriel Pec (+4 to 12 million) will be significantly upgraded after an impressive playoff run.
The Brazilian Pec could become the next big MLS export from this group, says expert Becker. “Gabriel Pec, together with Joveljic and Paintsil, formed one of the best attacking trios in MLS history. Pec has everything a top winger needs: speed, technique, an eye for the teammate and a good finish. It’s no surprise that both Arsenal and Liverpool are interested in the 23-year-old.”
Although he failed to score in his first four league games, Pec managed 21 goals and 18 assists in 41 games across all competitions for the Galaxy this season. Before the season he was signed by Vasco Da Gama for 9.3 million euros, and for Los Angeles this transfer has long felt like a bargain.
Meanwhile, Galaxy newcomer Marco Reus received a minus. The market value of the former Dortmund player has fallen by one million euros to now 4 million euros. A level that the two-time Footballer of the Year in Germany was last at in 2010, when he was still working for Borussia Mönchengladbach. The 35-year-old moved across the pond on a free transfer in August and made eleven appearances in his first MLS season, in which he scored four goals. “You always work your whole career to be successful, to try to reach as many finals as possible and then win. That didn’t work out so much for me in Germany. But as I said when I arrived, the goal was always to continue to be successful,” Reus said after the first championship title of his career.
The German striker Hany Mukhtar from Nashville is also down by a million. The former league MVP, who has 16 scorers in 2024, is now valued at 7 million euros, but remains the most valuable German legionnaire in the MLS. For St. Louis City midfielder Eduard Löwen, the price has fallen by 500,000 euros to 5 million euros. While the market value of Philadelphia’s Kai Wagner remains at the same amount, the former St. Pauli professional Marcel Hartel (St. Louis) is receiving an increase of 500,000 euros to 4.5 million euros. Teammate Cedric Teuchert also increased his value from 3 million to 3.5 million, while the other ex-Hannover player, Lawrence Ennali from Houston Dynamo, is still at 3 million euros.
MLS market values: Cucho Hernández in top-3 – Evander in top-5
Meanwhile, Columbus Crew star Cucho Hernández was rewarded for another strong season. “Cucho not only maintained his form from the last update, but even improved it,” attests Becker and adds: “40 goal involvements in 41 games in all competitions speak for themselves. He is also becoming more and more interesting for European clubs.” Hernández, who was signed by Watford in 2022 for 9.55 million euros, was able to increase his market value from 9 million at the start of the contract to now 15 million euros. The Crew was one of the best teams of the season despite an early playoff exit.
Other notable increases in the update include Evander from the Portland Timbers (+4 to 14 million), Mateusz Bogusz from LAFC (+2 to 10 million), Lewis Morgan from the New York Red Bulls and Diego Luna from Real Salt Lake City (both +1 to 6 million).
Morgan in particular stands out. The Scottish winger was one of the main reasons the Red Bulls reached the MLS Cup final, where the Harrison, New Jersey club was narrowly beaten by the Galaxy (2-1). Morgan was voted Comeback Player of the Season and recalled to the Scottish national team. He remains a pro to keep an eye on next year.
This is how transfer market market values work
The transfer market market values are created taking into account various pricing models as well as a strong involvement of the transfer market community, which deals with the values in detailed discussions. The transfer market market values cannot generally be equated with the transfer fees actually paid.
The goal is not to predict a price, but rather an expected value. When determining the market value, both individual transfer modalities and situational conditions are relevant to a certain extent. Examples of this are listed here. Transfermarkt does not use an algorithm (for detailed market value definition).