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Matthijs de Ligt beats Cody Gakpo to be ranked as the Netherlands' 'most valuable' player
Matthijs de Ligt has been ranked as the Netherlands' 'most valuable' player, despite the fact he is yet to feature at Euro 2024.
The Bayern Munich defender has seen his summer dominated by links with a move to Manchester United but he has failed to break into Ronaldo Koeman's squad at this summer's tournament.
Even with a lack of minutes, transfer experts FootballTransfers give De Ligt an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of £44.6m - comfortably the highest of any player in the Oranje ranks.
To create this figure, they use 'information on the player’s skill, potential, recent performance, contract duration, position and others to estimate an accurate transfer fee'.
De Ligt featured 22 times for Bayern in the Bundesliga with goals coming in wins over Bochum and Borussia Mönchengladbach. He's made a total of 73 appearances for the club following his arrival from Juventus in July 2022.
Liverpool's Cody Gakpo - currently the joint-top scorer at the tournament with three - is given an ETV of £40.1m. That is an increase on the £35m the Reds paid to bring him to Anfield from PSV in January 2023.
He is joined in the top five by another Liverpool team mate in Ryan Gravenberch although he, like De Ligt, is yet to see minutes in Germany so far.
England boast the most 'valuable' squad at the Euros at £1.048bn, yet they face a Netherlands side valued at just over £520m - almost exactly half the figure of the Three Lions.
The Dutch have made the last four despite their midfield being decimated before the tournament began with both Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong (ETV of £40.1m) and Atalanta star Teun Koopmeiners (ETV of £30.9m) being ruled out through injury.
Who are the most valuable Netherlands players?
- Matthijs de Ligt (Bayern Munich) - ETV: £44.6m: A name of interest to fans in England with the defender reportedly close to joining Manchester United, and for once this wouldn’t be a significant overpay based on the reported £43m asking price - his ETV stands at £44.6m. De Ligt’s value peaked at £68m after his big-money move to Juventus in 2019, but since then it has been a tale of gradual decline - especially since his move to Bayern in the summer of 2022.
- Cody Gakpo (Liverpool) - ETV: £40.1m: The former PSV man may not have convinced everybody on Merseyside since his £35m move to Liverpool in January 2023, but he is the favourites in the betting to win the Golden Boot with three goals so far at Euro 2024. Gakpo’s current ETV is now in excess of the fee the Reds paid to acquire him, and it will be fascinating to see how Arne Slot uses him next term.
- Xavi Simons (RB Leipzig) - ETV: £39.8m: An exciting talent, who remains a PSG player despite constant links with a big-money move away from France - notably to Arsenal and both Manchester clubs. His ETV has rocketed in the last two years, and though another season on loan at RB Leipzig is a possibility right now, the next few days could change all that.
- Jeremie Frimpong (Bayer Leverkusen) - ETV: £35.1m: A star in the Bayer Leverkusen team which ended their long, long wait for Bundesliga success this season. A natural wing-back, he has been used in a more advanced position for his country. While he may not have featured as much as he would have liked this summer, his ETV is still at £35.1m. Expect further transfer talk in the next couple of weeks.
- Ryan Gravenberch (Liverpool) - ETV: £33.3m: The midfielder ranks as the Netherlands' fifth-most valuable player in the squad with an ETV of £33.3m - almost identical to the £33.8m the Reds paid for him on deadline day. Gravenberch featured 38 times following his switch from Bayern last summer but has found playing time difficult at the Euros - he is yet to feature for Ronald Koeman's side.
For England, it comes as no surprise to see that star midfielder Jude Bellingham is given the highest ETV in their squad. He's currently worth £122.6m - already a significant increase on the £87m base fee Real Madrid paid to Borussia Dortmund last summer.
Phil Foden is in second at £99.4m, while captain Harry Kane takes third on £89.9m.
Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford - who has once again received plaudits for his efforts in Germany - is valued at £28.8m. This will be a lot lower than most expect but his age (30) could play a significant part in the calculation.
Dean Henderson is ranked as the lowest in the England set-up, yet his £9.3m figure is higher than six of those involved for the Netherlands.
Euro 2024: More from Sporting Life
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