Obed Vargas’ asking price is reportedly $10 million

Few players in the world can boast the resume of Obed Vargas. Still just 19 years old, Vargas already has well over 100 appearances and 8,000 minutes with the first team. He also has already made his full Mexico national team debut.

The Seattle Sounders have openly expressed that they know Vargas will eventually move on, but have also made clear that they don’t expect that to happen until summer.

One thing that’s been unknown is exactly how much the Sounders are expecting to receive. Now, there’s a report out of Mexico suggesting that both Chivas and Tigres UANL have inquired about Vargas, but have been put off by the $10 million asking price.

While it’s entirely possible the Sounders are putting a bit of a premium on Vargas for Liga MX teams, this price figure doesn’t seem entirely out of line. There aren’t too many players who can match Vargas’ age and experience, and even fewer who can match his 2024 season, in which he had two goals and seven assists across all competitions.

One interesting comparison is 19-year-old central midfielder Bobby Clark, who recently moved to Red Bull Salzburg on a roughly $13 million transfer from Liverpool. Before joining Salzburg, he had limited first-team experience, had mostly played for youth teams and still hasn’t made his full England national team debut. Tottenham recently paid about $11 million for 18-year-old Lucas Bergvall, who had never before played outside of Sweden and had about half as many first-team minutes as Vargas.

All of which is to say, $10 million may be a hefty asking price but it also doesn’t seem out of line for what European teams are spending on similar players.