Oleg Ryabchuk completes his third consecutive year as the most expensive Moldovan footballer // Photo: fmf.md
The total value of all the players on the list is €13.625 million. Only four players are valued at €1 million or more. A year earlier there were only two – Oleg Ryabchuk and Ion Nicolaescu, who continue to top the ranking. The value of Sergiu Percun, who has almost quadrupled in value over the year (until June his market value was €400 thousand) and Vladislav Baboglo (he was valued at €700 thousand in December 2024) have increased significantly. Vadim Ratse, who was in the top three, a year later ranks only eighth with a €100k decrease in value.
The greatest representation in the list are the players playing in foreign championships. Out of 22 players, only four are from Moldovan Super League clubs: three from Hincesti “Petrocub” (it is reported that the contract with Teodor Lungu, valid until December 31, will not be extended – author’s note) and one from the capital “Zimbru”. Petrocub midfielder Mihail Lupan, whose market value has not changed over the year, is the only player from a domestic league club to make the top ten list.
Oleg Ryabchuk became the most expensive Moldovan footballer for the first time in August 2023 after his transfer from Greek Olympiacos to Spartak for about €7 million including bonuses. In May 2023, the defender was valued at €4 million, by October his market value reached a historic high of €5 million. Since then, Ryabchuk has been losing value at the rate of €1 million per year.
The 27-year-old Jaloveni native’s salary at Spartak is around €1.8m, excluding bonuses. For example, in March, Ryabchuk received a €21,000 bonus for the 2-1 win over Zenit, his principal rival, and spent the entire match on the pitch – about five times the amount usually paid to club players for winning the Russian league title.
His contract with Spartak expires in June 2026. According to a number of Russian publications, the management of the Moscow club does not intend to extend the agreement with the player. At the same time, the defender is consistently included in the application form of the national team of Moldova, for which he played in 62 matches. After the completion of Artur Ionita’s career in the national team, Riabciuc is the most experienced player in the camp of the “tricolor”. Vadim Racă has one less match to his credit, but he is almost five years older than Ryabchuk.
Ion Nicolaescu, the best scorer in the history of the national team, forward Maccabi (Tel Aviv, Israel) retained the second position in the rating. After his transfer from Dutch Heerenveen, his value has not changed, but a serious injury in early December, which put the 27-year-old Cahul native out of action until the end of the season (approximately until June 2026), could negatively affect his market value.
Nicolaescu’s contract with the Israeli club runs until June 2028. His salary is €500k per year, which is about 40% more than his previous club in the Dutch championship. With 18 goals in 56 matches, Nicolaescu is the top scorer in the history of the Moldovan national team and remains its main attacking force.
Sergiu Perciun, the midfielder of Tricolor and Italian Torino, has equalized with Nicolaescu in the market value, although a year ago he was not in the top ten. The footballer has not yet played a single match in Serie A. He regularly plays for the youth team in Primavera 1, the most prestigious Italian league, which represents athletes under 20 years old.
The promising 19-year-old midfielder made his debut for the national team in June in a friendly against Poland (0-2). Perchun played in seven matches, and his appearance in the final match of the European qualifying cycle for the World Cup against Israel (1:4) was marred by a suspension in the 18th minute.
Earlier, the defender Vladyslav Baboglo, who represented the youth national team of Ukraine, increased in price by more than 30% over the year. The dynamics of his market value shows an enviable stability – in 2020-2024 the indicator was at the level of €700-800 thousand. In the spring of this year he managed to reach the mark of €1 million for the first time. Baboglo is the highest paid footballer of Karpaty from Lviv. According to the Ukrainian media, the footballer receives €300 thousand a year, not counting bonuses. In case of a win, the players share the bonus of €20 thousand. The 27-year-old player’s contract with the Ukrainian club runs until June 2027.
A native of Copcak village (ATU Gagauzia), Vladislav Baboglo accepted the offer of the Moldovan Football Federation to join our national team in 2023. During two and a half years, he played in 24 matches, in which he scored two goals.
Cristian Avram and Virgiliu Postolaki shared the fifth place. Avram, who plays in the top league in Azerbaijan, became the most expensive Moldovan goalkeeper. Postolaki, unlike Avram, was represented in the top ten a year ago, but during the year he was in the Romanian CFR, the 25-year-old striker managed to increase his value by 50%. In the summer, he moved to another club from Cluj-Napoca, Universitatea. In November, Postolacchi filed a complaint with the Romanian Football Federation and UEFA about wage arrears not paid to him by his previous club. The amount owed is not disclosed, but the CFR club faces exclusion from European competitions for one season if he fails to pay.
The rise in value of the 31-year-old goalkeeper is even more impressive – as much as 90%. Compared to September 2023, when Avram moved to Araz-Nakhchivan from Petrocub, the goalkeeper’s market value has increased five times. He remains the main goalkeeper for his team, whose contract ends in June next year.
The market value of 22-year-old midfielder Stefan Bodisteanu, ranked seventh, shows a steady increase. After his move to Romanian Super League club Botoșani, the player’s price has risen by more than 60%. The pupil of the Zimbru and Gheorghe Hagi academies does not often feature in the starting lineup of his club, but in less than a year he has gained a high level of confidence from the coaching staff of the Moldovan national team. He played in 10 matches, and it was Bodisteanu’s goal in the away match against Estonia (1:1) that allowed the “tricolor” to earn the only point in the qualifying tournament for the Mundial.
The most noticeable drop in the rating is for 32-year-old Vadim Ratse. Over the year, his market value has dropped by a little over 10%. However, due to the strengthening positions of younger teammates, the midfielder lost his place in the top three, falling back five positions. The player is moving away from the figures of almost four years ago, when he was valued at €1.2 million when he was with Romanian club Voluntari. Racă’s contract with Argeș (Romania) runs until June 2027.
The only representative of the Moldovan club in the top ten is Petrocub striker Mihail Lupan. The midfielder’s market value has not changed over the year. If at the end of 2024, he shared the ninth place with Postolaki and Vitali Damascan, now he is accompanied by goalkeeper Andrei Cojuhar and defender Denis Marandic. Kozhukhar made it to the top ten thanks to the fact that his price went up by 65% over the year. Marandic’s value for the same period first increased by 30%, and then decreased by 15%.
Nikita Motspan (decreased in price by more than 40%), Artur Krechun (almost doubled in value) and Vitaly Damascan (20% decrease in value) left the top ten over the year. Vladimir Ambros, a year earlier ranked seventh, is not even among the 20 most expensive Moldovan footballers. His market value decreased by 50%, to €300 thousand. The Petrocub striker shares the 24th place with Victor Bogaciuc, Iurie Iovu, Mihail Caimacov, Alexei Koshelev, Petru Popescu and Mihail Stefan.
|
TOP-20 most expensive Moldovan footballers |
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|
№ |
Footballer | Club |
Market value* |
|
1 |
Oleg Ryabchuk | “Spartak (Moscow, Russia) |
€3 mln |
|
2-3 |
Ion Nicolaescu | “Maccabi” (Tel Aviv, Israel) |
€1.5 mln |
| Sergiu Perciun | “Torino” (Italy) | ||
|
4 |
Vladyslav Baboglo | “Karpaty (Ukraine) |
€1 mln |
|
5-6 |
Christian Avram | “Araz-Nakhchivan” (Azerbaijan) |
€750 th. |
| Virgiliu Postolaki | “Universitatea (Cluj-Napoca, Romania) | ||
|
7 |
Stefan Bodisteanu | “Botoșani” (Romania) |
€700k |
|
8 |
Vadim Racă | “Argeș” (Romania) |
€650 th. |
|
9-11 |
Andriy Kozhukhar | “Veres” (Ukraine) |
€500 th. |
| Mykhailo Lupan | “Petrocub” | ||
| Denis Marandich | “Turan Tovuz” (Azerbaijan) | ||
|
12 |
Vlad Rayleanu | “Rukh” (Ukraine) |
€450 th. |
|
13-15 |
Vitaliy Damascan | “Zrinjski” (Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina) |
€400 th. |
| Teodor Lungu | “Petrocub” (until 31.12.2025) | ||
| Nikita Motspan | “Fakel” (Russia) | ||
|
16 |
Vladimir Fratya | “Zimbru” |
€375k. |
|
17-22 |
Ion Borsch | “Petrocub” |
€350k each. |
| Vik Bulmaga | “Isloch” (Belarus) | ||
| Stefan Bytka | “Zalaegerszeg” (Hungary) | ||
| Artur Kreczun | LKS “Lodz” (Poland) | ||
| Louvannor | “Al-Faisaly”
(Saudi Arabia) |
||
| Victor Styne | “Bnei Yehuda” (Israel) | ||
| Total: |
€13.625 million |
||
| * According to Transfermarkt | |||
