West Ham's most valuable players
West Ham's most valuable players
West Ham United’s relegation from the Premier League forced a significant rebuild during the summer, but the latest Transfermarkt valuations underline just how much individual quality Nuno Espirito Santo still has at his disposal.
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The Hammers now boast seven of the 25 most valuable players in the Championship, according to Transfermarkt, while the top three positions are all occupied by West Ham players.
Jarrod Bowen leads the way, ahead of Taty Castellanos and Arne Engels, with Konstantinos Mavropanos, Pablo Felipe, Soungoutou Magassa and Mads Hermansen also featuring inside the division’s top 25.
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Combined, those seven players carry Transfermarkt market values of approximately €149m, which converts to around £126.9m at current exchange rates.
Transfermarkt stress that their market values should not be treated as predicted transfer fees. Instead, they are intended to represent a player’s expected value in an open market, taking factors such as age, performances, position, contract situation and wider demand into account.
Even with that caveat, West Ham’s dominance of the Championship rankings is difficult to ignore.
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READ MORE: The 25 most valuable players in the Championship – full updated rankings
West Ham dominate the Championship’s most valuable players
Bowen remains the headline name, which was to be expected.
The West Ham captain is valued at €30m, approximately £25.5m, despite now being 29 years old. With a contract at London Stadium running until 2030, his valuation reflects a player who has spent several seasons producing consistently at Premier League and European level.
Castellanos sits immediately behind him at €28m, around £23.8m.
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West Ham paid €29m to sign the Argentine from Lazio in January, and his Transfermarkt value has subsequently risen from €25m to €28m since then.
Engels completes the all-West Ham top three at €25m, approximately £21.3m, which isn't surprise given West Ham broke the Championship transfer record to buy him from Celtic for £22m in the summer.
The Belgian’s performances have already suggested that his importance extends considerably beyond goals and assists, too. Engels controls the rhythm of possession, progresses the ball, creates from deeper areas and has developed into one of West Ham’s most reliable set-piece takers.
His position among the Championship’s most valuable players now provides another indication of how highly his overall profile is regarded.
Further down the rankings, Mavropanos and Pablo are both valued at €18m, or roughly £15.3m.
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Mavropanos’ inclusion is notable because Transfermarkt generally places significant weight on age and potential resale value, yet the 28-year-old remains one of the division’s highest-valued defenders at €18m.
Pablo carries the same valuation at only 22 and is contracted to West Ham until 2030.
Magassa follows at €17m, approximately £14.5m, having increased from the €12m valuation he had when West Ham signed him from Monaco last summer.
Hermansen completes West Ham’s seven-man presence with a valuation of €15m, around £12.8m, and is the only goalkeeper listed in the top 25.
Top 25 Rank West Ham Player Value (€) Value (£)
1st Jarrod Bowen €30m £25.5m
2nd Taty Castellanos €28m £23.9m
3rd Arne Engels €25m £21.3m
11th Pablo Felipe €18m £15.3m
13th Konstantinos Mavropanos €18m £15.3m
20th Soungoutou Magassa €15m £12.8m
24th Mads Hermansen €15m £12.8m
- TOTAL: €149m £126.9m
Rankings underline the advantage Nuno has been given
West Ham boss Nuno Espirito Santo
West Ham boss Nuno Espirito Santo
Transfermarkt valuations obviously have no direct impact on the Championship table.
The division has repeatedly shown that expensive squads can struggle against well-organised, experienced teams, while a player’s theoretical market value means very little when facing the physical and tactical demands of a 46-game season.
What the rankings do provide is a useful illustration of the resources available to Nuno compared with most of his rivals.
West Ham were successful in keeping several Premier League-level players in the squad following relegation and now possess almost a third of the Championship’s 25 most valuable players as a result.
The fact the top three are all at London Stadium makes the disparity even more striking.
Bowen is an established Premier League attacker and England international, Castellanos arrived from Serie A for a substantial fee only nine months ago, while Engels represents the type of younger high-value midfielder that clubs normally expect to see operating in a top-flight environment.
Behind them sit players with Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Premier League and international experience.
That doesn't guarantee promotion, obviously, but it does change the expectations surrounding West Ham’s season.
Nuno isn't building a promotion challenge from a squad stripped of its best assets following relegation. The summer changed the group considerably, but enough high-level talent has remained, and more has been added, for West Ham to hold an individual-quality advantage over much of the division.
It's also worth pointing out that Wolves have six players in the top 25 most valuable players in the Championship, but the fact West Ham the top three just shows how well West Ham did to retain so much individual quality, as well as add to it, following relegation.
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West Ham’s rankings add more pressure
There is another side to that, though.
Possessing seven of the Championship’s 25 highest-valued players removes some of the excuses available to a relegated club adapting to the second tier.
West Ham should still expect difficult away trips, physical opponents and periods when their technical superiority does not translate into control, as Millwall demonstrated before the international break. But across 46 games, squad quality should eventually tell.
The early evidence already suggests several of West Ham’s most valuable players are doing exactly that.
Bowen remains the team’s main match-winner, Castellanos has provided goals and movement in attack, Engels has developed into arguably the key component of Nuno’s midfield and Mavropanos has added an extraordinary goalscoring threat from centre-back.
Indeed, market values cannot win promotion on their own, but when one club possesses seven of the Championship’s 25 highest-valued players and all three of the most valuable individuals in the division, expectations naturally rise with them.
For Nuno, the challenge is making sure the league table eventually reflects the same dominance as the financial one come May 2027.