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3. Top Todibo

At Nice last season, Jean-Clair Todibo was part of the stingiest defence in Ligue 1.

The centre-back started 30 of Nice’s 34 matches as the club from the French Riviera conceded just 29 goals on their way to finishing fifth and qualifying for the UEFA Europa League.

As a result, Todibo was linked with some of Europe’s biggest clubs before joining West Ham United in mid-August.

The speculation over the 24-year-old’s future meant he did not complete a full pre-season and arrived in east London short of full match fitness and sharpness.

Having worked on that and his strength and conditioning and settled into life in a new country, Todibo showed what all the fuss was about in Saturday’s 4-1 Premier League win over Ipswich Town.

Todibo made a team-high five clearances, but it was other aspects of his game that caught the eye, namely his strength, distribution and willingness to carry the ball out of defence.

The Frenchman completed 55 of his 58 pass attempts, including 51 of 52 ‘short’ passes under 20 yards, while he also embarked on a succession of impressive dribbles from the back.