Channel hoppers: Five fantastic Ligue 1 prospects to look out for

With tabloids full of transfer tales surrounding PSG starlet Adrien Rabiot and prolific Marseille frontman Andre-Pierre Gignac’s possible preparations to cross the channel, Coral writers decided to take a look at who else may be primed for a winter window move.

Below are our five fantastic picks from Ligue 1, who could potentially make an instant impact at Premier League clubs this January.

Wissam Ben Yedder (forward, Toulouse)
At age 24, Ben Yedder is about to come into the peak of his powers, and has already drawn attention by bagging 34 Ligue 1 goals in 87 outings for Toulouse. The French-born forward of Tunisian descent has already netted six times this term and has previously been linked with Liverpool.

Ben Yedder could be ideal as an alternative foil for the Reds’ Daniel Sturridge, as the tricky, skilful striker is adept at creating space for himself and would have eagerly gobbled up many of Liverpool’s spurned chances this campaign. The Toulouse talent can also fashion opportunities for others, having provided five assists last season, but Premier League clubs keen on the starlet could now face competition from Spanish giants Barcelona.

Nabil Fekir (attacking midfield, Lyon)
The exciting 21-year old attacking midfielder has scored four Ligue 1 goals for Lyon this season, and has been growing in influence for the former French giants since he burst onto the scene for his hometown club in 2013.

Of Algerian descent, thrilling Fekir has followed in the footsteps of former Lyon starlets Karim Benzema and Hatem Ben Arfa by being called-up to the France Under-21’s squad. He still has a lot to prove before earning a full cap for Les Bleus senior side, but interest from Algeria could see him make the step up to senior international football sooner than expected.

Versatile enough to play a number of attacking roles, Fekir would fit fantastically into Ronald Koeman’s high-flying Southampton side. However, the highly-rated youngster has been making such waves that only a switch to a big-money club seems plausible and no doubt Arsene Wenger will be watching.

Florian Thauvin (attacking midfield, Marseille)
Thauvin, likened to Franck Ribery in style, would surely be difficult to prise away from Ligue 1 leaders Marseille in January, having started all of his team’s matches.