NEW DELHI: The first round of group stage matches at the 2026 FIFA World Cup delivered theater of the highest order. From Morocco schooling Brazil with their silky, eye-pleasing football, to Lionel Messi’s hat-trick against Algeria and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal failing to find a winner against Congo, the first matchweek had it all. However, one of the most stunning moments came when Cabo Verde’s 40-year-old goalkeeper, Josimar José Évora Dias, popularly known as Vozinha, left one of world football’s heavyweights scratching their heads.Seven saves against Spain were enough to spoil a perfect start for the Spanish armada, securing a historic 0-0 draw on Cabo Verde’s World Cup debut and earning Vozinha the prestigious Man of the Match award. Currently playing for GD Chaves in Portugal’s second division, Vozinha has become an overnight sensation.While making headlines for his footballing heroics, thousands of miles away in India, the same goalkeeper sparked a heated, uncomfortable debate online.
The market value of Vozinha is 40 lakh rupees
As highlights of Vozinha’s performance went viral, frustrated Indian football fans, many of whom have seen their hair turn gray as they wait for India to fulfill their dream of playing in the World Cup, pointed to a startling anomaly.According to Transfermarkt, a digital database that tracks global football statistics and players’ market values, the veteran’s market value is just Rs 40 lakh.On the other hand, the members of the recent Indian team selected by head coach Khalid Jamil for their Tajik friends have double, triple or even quadruple ratings, despite not being even close to qualifying for the World Cup.
If put into numbers, the Indian team has an average market value of 1.46 crore rupees, with the absolute lowest baseline of 80 lakh rupees for players like Rahul Bheke and Pramveer.Even India’s wicketkeeping trio of Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Albino Gomes and Hrithik Tiwari have market values of Rs 1.4 Crore, Rs 1.4 Crore and Rs 1.8 Crore respectively. For those doing the comparison, the argument was as clear as white paper that India’s players were drastically overrated compared to the proven World Cup protagonist.
How does Transfermarkt calculate market value?
To understand this disconnect, we need to look at how Transfermarkt calculates these numbers. The platform does not use a pure performance algorithm. Instead, it relies on the “wisdom of the community,” whose members estimate a player’s expected value within the free market.Individual transfer modalities and situational conditions are largely taken into account in the calculation rather than predicting the exact future transfer fee.And so player evaluation becomes a reflection of local market demand, league-specific financial parameters and the purchasing power of domestic clubs, rather than a direct indicator of international quality.
What do the experts say?
Former India international Robin Singh believes that the responsibility for these assessments falls solely on the clubs and not on the players themselves.“I am very happy for Vozinha, who had a great performance. The comparison with the Indian market, I think, is a question that is relevant for the clubs,” Singh said. TimesofIndia.com during an exclusive interaction. “It depends on how much the player is in demand and how much money the club is willing to pay for him.“If a club in the Indian market feel that a goalkeeper is worth a lot more, I think they are the ones who have to be asked this market valuation question.”Former Indian midfielder Mehtab Hossain, however, has a more critical view of the disparity. Pointing out that Vozinha is already 40 and past his prime, Hossain argues that the market value is also a reflection of the player’s career stage. Take the example of Sandesh Jhingan, whose current market value is Rs 2 crore, but was much higher at Rs 2.4 crore three years ago. In the case of Vozinha, he had the highest market value of 4.8 million rupees at the age of 31.However, as he delved deeper into the issue, he couldn’t help but admit that the valuations of some players in the Indian market are indeed inflated.Football money depends on many factors, Hossain told this website. “And here, for clubs like East Bengal or Mohun Bagan, what’s happening now, especially with the pressure (of signing a certain player), I think the valuation of the player is increasing. There is pressure that we have to build a good team, we have to fight for the league title, and what happens with football in the country is not important. The important thing is that if I want this player, I will take him at any price, and that raises the price.“Apart from age and career trajectory, Hossain believes that inflation in Indian football is driven by structural problems and aggressive maneuvering by agents, with beneficiaries often taking advantage of intense competition between clubs.“A player’s agent will say, ‘My player has an offer from East Bengal’, when in reality there may not be an offer. Agents also make money from this. Part of the damage is caused by agents. I mean, with all due respect, agents should think about this too. Line your pockets, but only the clubs know how much they suffer.”
