With football still suspended and no up and coming matches acting as distractions, coaches and scouting teams at all clubs are being bestowed a rare period in which to take a more detailed look at their playing staff and identify any weaknesses they need to address in the next transfer window – whenever that may be.

Things will be no different at Manchester United with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his team looking to build on their good work in the market across the previous 12 months with a view to closing the gap on the sides currently occupying the Premier League’s top positions.

This prolonged break from competitive matches means that United’s scouting team can take a more extensive look at some of Europe’s other top divisions and the players impressing within the same. One particular hotbed for talent in recent years has been France’s Ligue 1, with a number of big talents such as Tanguy Ndombele, Nicolas Pépé and Fabinho all making moves to the Premier League from sides in the divison.

With this in mind, who are some of the league’s top performers this season and should any of those players be on United’s radar?

Predrag Rajković

Club: Stade de Reims

Position: GK

A big 6ft3in keeper, Rajković joined Reims in the summer from Maccabi Tel-Aviv for less that £3m and has gone onto to be one of Ligue’s 1 real success stories.

He’s been one of the big reasons why his side have secured an impressive 12 clean sheets this season – the highest total in the division. The 24-year-old can also boast the best save percentage in the division with an average of 81.25 per cent.

For context, Liverpool’s Alisson ranks top in this regard in the Premier League with a save percentage of 80 per cent.

A good metric for analysing a keeper’s performance levels beyond the above traditional areas is looking at their open play Post-Shot Expected Goals against (PSxGA) numbers.

In recent times, Expect goals (xG) has become prevalent within football and is basically a metric that measures the quality of a shot based on several variables such as assist type, shot angle and distance from goal.

However, PSxGA uses both that, but also information from after the shot has been hit right up until if it was to pass the goalkeeper. So this includes characteristics such as defensive pressure, speed, shot trajectory and it tends to give a better overview of the quality of a shot.

This season, Rajković’s PSxGA totals 22.79, meaning that in simple terms, based on the quality of shots he has faced, the keeper would have been expected to concede around 23 open play goals. He has instead conceded just 19, which is a testament to his own performance levels this season.

Would he prove a worthwhile signing for United?

Given that United boast three first-rate keepers already in the form of David De Gea, Sergio Romero and Dean Henderson, it’s very unlikely that they will be entering the market this summer for any reinforcements in this area.

However, don’t be surprised to see Rajković make the switch to one of United’s Premier League rivals in the coming seasons.

Alexander Djiku

Club: Strasbourg

Position: CB

Djiko’s impressive performances across the course of this campaign have sparked interest from a number of clubs across Europe.

Playing for mid-table Strasbourg means he is one of the busier defenders in the division and averages 7.47 defensive duels per 90. But impressively, his defensive duel success rate of 73.22 per cent ranks as the best in the division for under-26 central defenders who have played 1500 league minutes.

Furthermore, the 25-year-old can also boast the second-best aerial duel success rate on the list too, despite standing at a decent but unremarkable 6ft. The below visualisation highlights him as one of the league’s better defenders on current form.

Beyond those impressive defensive capabilities, the 25-year-old is also exhibiting good ball-playing abilities, boasting a pass success rate of over 90 per cent this season.

Would he prove a worthwhile signing for United?

United have assembled a decent group of central defenders which is spearheaded by Harry Maguire who has established himself as one of the Premier League’s best defenders. Along with him, there are the likes of Victor Lindelöf, Eric Bailly and Axel Tuanzebe all vying for a role in Solskjaer’s side.

Yet, there’s plenty to like about Djiku meaning United could be tempted to add further in this position. But if he did come in, he would likely offer nothing more than cover for Maguire on the left side on the defence given that the same is his preferred playing position.

Ibrahim Sangaré

Club: Toulouse

Position: CM

Sangaré has been on the radar of a number of Premier League clubs for a while, with Arsenal and Everton reportedly close to signing him in the summer. No move materialised and he stayed with Toulouse where he has managed to maintain a high level of consistent performances despite the French side sitting bottom of the table for the bulk of the campaign.

At 6ft3in, he possesses a tall frame and will often sit at the base of the midfield as a DM or he can play as a RCM. He boasts a brilliant passing range, even if his pass success rate of 82.83 per cent looks rather unremarkable on paper. But this can be explained by the fact that he attempts more penetrative passes that carry greater risk but a bigger reward when successful.

With this in mind, it should come as no surprise to note that he averages 8.93 progressive passes per 90 which is the sixth-best for midfielders who have played 1500+ league minutes.

Not just strong in possession, he is great without the ball, reading opposition attacks well and pressuring opponents with good interceptions and strong tackles.

Would he prove a worthwhile signing for United?

It’s been no secret that United have made their intentions clear in terms of wanting to bring in another midfielder.

Sangaré has proven to be a brilliant all-rounder good both with and without the ball. Whilst comfortable using both feet, he favours his right which could make him an ideal partner to Fred who is, of course, left-footed.

The 22-year-old could also play within a three, boasting the ability to feature as a number six or a number eight. For all of these reasons, Sangaré could prove to be a wise move for United.

Victor Osimhen

Club: Lille

Position: CF

It’s been an impressive season for the 21-year-old who has shone for a Lille side who currently occupy the division’s top four.

Osimhen cost just £11million in August when the French signed him from Belgian club Charleroi, this means they’ll be sure to make a huge profit when they do sanction any sale.

The forward stands at 6ft1in but looks fairly slim in his build. Yet he still proves a handful for opposition defenders in physical duels. He also possesses good pace and is very agile, skipping past defenders when driving towards goal.

This season, he has scored 13 league goals and registered a further four assists which has averaged out at an impressive 0.63 goal involvements per 90 so far. He’s slightly underperforming against his xG of 15.49, but given his age, that should not be a worry.

The same indicates he continues to get himself into good shooting locations and it’s likely that his finishing abilities will enhance as he develops.

Would he prove a worthwhile signing for United?

United brought in Odion Ighalo as short term cover in January following the injury sustained to Marcus Rashford and the Nigerian proved to be more than adequate, scoring four goals in five appearances prior to football’s suspension in March.

Yet, in June he will turn 31 meaning that United are unlikely to view him as a long-term option. Therefore investing in a player boasting Osimhen’s abilities and potential would make sense. He is already a real goal threat who can play in a multitude of roles across the frontline and has far from finished his development.

At a reasonable fee, he could go on to be a wise piece of business when the transfer window opens.