Bundesliga update: Davies becomes most valuable teenager and left-back

Canadian national team star Alphonso Davies continues to see his market value soar. On Tuesday, Transfermarkt increased his market value by €20 million to now €80 million. That makes Phonzie the most valuable teenager, the most valuable left back on the planet, and the most valuable player in Concacaf history. The 19-year-old has seen his market value increase by an eightfold since joining Bayern in January 2018. 

What makes the Canadian special? At first glance, his three goals and nine assists in 42 games across all competitions are not outstanding. But Davies' value is measured beyond barebone numbers. One only has to look back at certain vital games this season to understand why Davies has been perhaps the most exciting teenager on the planet. 

One example was the 32nd minute of Der Klassiker against Dortmund. Erling Haaland was through, all clear on goal with only Manuel Neuer to beat, but then out of nowhere, Davies appeared, taking the ball off the Borussia Dortmund striker. Bayern would win that game 1-0 and, as a result, also have a clear path to defend the Bundesliga title.

"He's a player with a lot of heart and a lot of power, extreme power," his teammate Thomas Müller said after the game. "Sometimes maybe he's not [at his] best position on the field, but he gets the opponent when you think, 'Oh, I have time, I have time' and then 'Meep meep meep meep' the FC Bayern roadrunner comes ahead and steals the ball."

Davies' speed has been one reason for the Canadian to adapt quickly to the left-back role—the 19-year-old was clocked at 36.51 km/h, fast enough to earn a speeding ticket in a school zone in his native Canada. A classic winger of the truest sense, there were some hints that Davies could perhaps play a role further back. The Vancouver Whitecaps played him there, with mixed success, and former Bayern coach Niko Kovač also attempted it, playing Davies among others as a left-back in Bayern's 5-1 defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt. 

Alphonso Davies re-invented the left-back role

Under new Bayern head coach Hansi Flick, however, Davies not only took on the new role he also re-invented it. Playing next to a natural left-back in David Alaba, Davies is given the freedom to roam far up the field. Flick's defensive high-line also helps; one could even argue that Davies makes that line possible in the first place. 

Players like Davies allow Bayern to sit up high even against the best sides. This was clear in the Champions League, where Bayern became the first team in history to win every single game on the way to the title. Davies had several highlights on the way to Bayern's sixth triumph in that competition; in the first leg against Chelsea, the Canadian dominated the game from the left, leaving behind a confused and frustrated Blues' defense that at times looked like schoolboys. 

Speaking of schoolboys, Davies also had his moment against Barcelona. Bayern won that game 8-2 but there were several moments when the result could have perhaps gone the other way, including when Luis Suárez scored to make it 4-2. Just moments later, Davies made Nélson Semedo look like a schoolboy, dancing past him to set up Joshua Kimmich for Bayern's fifth. 

Davies: Not yet a finished product

The Champions League, however, showed that Davies is not yet a finished product. The Canadian had his wobbles in the first half. An early yellow card and problems against Ángel di María did make way to a much more stable second half, including a cool header back to Manuel Neuer under immense pressure. 

There was nonetheless a lesson in that game. Davies is far from a finished product. Defensively the Canadian will have to improve his positional play; tactically, Bayern might not always rely on a high defensive line.

That said, given Davies' is already much further in his development than many projected when he first joined the Rekordmeister. With that in mind, the current market value of €80 million is just a moment in time; a brief stop on further stardom for Canada's biggest-ever soccer star. 

Davies Back to 1st! The Most Valuable Players in Concacaf