Ligue 1 market values: Balogun on the up - Messi, Neymar and 15 further PSG players drop

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Lionel Messi is leaving, Kylian Mbappé seems to want to leave and there are also rumours about Neymar – after a disappointing season from a Parisian point of view, there is only one upgrade, but 17 downgrades for Paris Saint-Germain in the latest Transfermarkt Ligue 1 market value update. The biggest market value winner is RB Leipzig transfer target Loïs Openda, and among the French top-flight's clubs his employers RC Lens increased the most.

At the start of the 2022/23 season, Messi and Openda were separated by €42.5 million in terms of market value. One season later, the attackers now have the same market value of €35m. While the Belgian star of Lens has increased his value by €15m this time, the World Cup winner’s value has dropped by €10m. “Messi recently celebrated his 36th birthday, moves to the much weaker MLS on a free transfer and will be by far the most valuable player in the US league with his new market value despite the drop,” Ronan Caroff, Area Manager Transfermarkt France, said.

Openda, whose 21 goals set a new club record at Lens, arrived from Club Brugge for a transfer fee of €11.8m at the start of the season and is now worth three times the amount. His club are asking for even more, probably because 12.5% of the transfer fee would go to his youth club. “Openda already showed great potential in the first half of the season, but has also been too inconsistent,” Caroff said. “That changed in the final third of the season when he found his rhythm, scored 12 goals in the last 12 games and led his club to 33 points out of a possible 36.”

Market Value

L. Openda Centre-Forward

€60.00m

Ligue 1 market values: Arsenal’s Balogun among winners - Gomes on the up

Another winner of the update in Ligue 1 is Arsenal forward Folarin Balogun, who recently switched allegiance from England to the United States to represent the latter as he was born in Brooklyn, New York. Having spent last season on loan at Stade Reims, the 21-year-old played himself into the spotlight with 21 goals in 37 league games and is now worth just €5m less than Messi.

Market Value

F. Balogun Centre-Forward

€30.00m

“When we look back on the last Ligue 1 season, Balogun’s breakthrough can be considered as one of biggest ones,” Caroff said. “That also reflects in his market value, which has risen from €4m to €30m since his loan spell in Reims started. The club’s form has been rather poor since the spring update, but Balogun continued scoring. He should be a much-wanted transfer target this summer, as it’s questionable if Arsenal could give him the playing time he would request.” Both Milan clubs as well as Crystal Palace are reportedly interested in the striker.

Fellow countryman Timothy Weah, who spent four months on loan at Celtic in the 2018/19 season, is among the winners of the update as well and has seen his market value rise by €2m to €14m. The 23-year-old Lille forward is set to join Italian top club Juventus this summer. Among the eight English players in the French top flight, Angel Gomes is the only winner. “From a squad player last season, he gained new head coach Paulo Fonseca’s trust immediately, starting 34 out of the 36 games,” Caroff said. “Gomes has been used in various midfield positions, and did well in every single one. He is key to Lille’s playing style and that reflects in the team’s internal market value rankings, where he is now the third most valuable player behind Jonathan David and Jonathan Bamba.” The former Manchester United player rises by €3m to €16m.

Market Value

A. Gomes Attacking Midfield

€22.00m

Ligue 1 market values: Barcola and Lacazette upgraded at Lyon

One of four upgrades in the double-digit millions goes to Lyon’s homegrown talent Bradley Barcola, whose market value was just €2m at the start of 2023. Now he made a jump from €7m to €18m. With seven goals and ten assists since the start of the year, eight of which were for captain Alexandre Lacazette (+€2m to €14m), the France U21 international is one of the most in-form players in Ligue 1. “Lyon’s academy has the next gift for the fans. I’m sure many had reservations when he was thrown into the starting eleven, but Barcola quickly put those fears to rest. He impressed in all three positions in the attack and, thanks to a contract that runs until 2026, OL should be able to build their future around him.”

17 downgrades All new PSG market values at a glance Click here for overview PSG would still like to build their future around Mbappé, but the world’s most valuable player does not want to extend his contract, which expires in 2024, and so a sale this summer seems to be a possibility. The market value of the world’s most valuable footballer alongside Erling Haaland remains at €180m, meaning Ligue 1’s top scorer is worth almost as much as the league’s second, third and fourth most valuable players combined and has a higher market value than 11 of the 20 Ligue 1 squads. The group of France’s three most valuable players no longer includes Neymar after a drop of €10m to €60m.

“Neymar started with great numbers and was directly involved in 35 goals in his first 29 games, before an injury ended his season in mid-February,” Caroff said. “At 31, he’s not as interesting to cash-rich clubs as he was a few years ago and that’s becoming more and more noticeable in terms of market value.” It is the eighth downgrade since Neymar held his peak value of €180m in 2019. Since his record €222m transfer, the Brazilian’s injury history has 19 new entries.

Market Value

Neymar Left Winger

€45.00m

Ligue 1 market values: Messi, Neymar & 15 further PSG players downgraded

In addition to Neymar and Messi, 15 further PSG players received a downgrade, resulting in a total loss in squad value of €78.8m. Now worth €804m, the French champions rank eighth in the international rankings until July 1. Among the most prominent market value losers are Achraf Hakimi (-€5m to €65m), Marquinhos (-€5m to €65m), Marco Verratti (-€10m to €40m) and Presnel Kimpembe (-€7m to €28m).

Market Value

M. Verratti Central Midfield

€25.00m

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).