Despite Bundesliga promotion, Schalke 04's squad market value has barely increased—a situation that has sparked considerable discussion among S04 fans recently. An expert explains the reasons behind this.

Tobias Kröger, Market Value Lead at the portal transfermarkt.de, noted to the WAZ that he has not missed the frustration among Schalke supporters. He stated that while he understands the desire for promotion euphoria to be reflected in market values, the squad is unfortunately simply not optimally positioned from a market value perspective.

Schalke's squad is currently valued at a total of 74.5 million euros on the platform. In the top division, only SV Elversberg (74.3 million euros) and SC Paderborn (53.9 million euros) fall below this figure.

One Schalke problem regarding market values: no Bundesliga squad has an older average age. Many young players receive very little playing time under manager Miron Muslic following the promotion.

Kröger noted that Mertcan Ayhan, perhaps Schalke's biggest talent in the Bundesliga so far, receives very little playing time. He explained that Ayhan would be the candidate with the greatest potential for significant value appreciation due to his age and talent. However, Kröger emphasized that Ayhan must actually get playing time for this to happen.

Schalke 04: Becker's reserve role "counterproductive"

The same problem exists with Vitalie Becker. The expert explained that while Robin Gosens has the edge on the left flank from a sporting perspective, this is counterproductive from a market value standpoint.

According to transfermarkt.de, Schalke's most valuable player—a club dependent on transfer revenue due to Bundesliga equity rules—is currently Soufiane El-Faouzi at twelve million euros.

Kröger expressed confidence that El-Faouzi can increase this value significantly over the course of the season, but certain rumors and performances must follow first. He noted that the debut for Morocco is also a good step in the right direction, looking ahead to the newly capped international player who has reportedly already attracted interest in England.