PSG's Randal Kolo Muani could play a key role in the transfer window

Paris Saint-Germain's Randal Kolo Muani is set to play a starring role in this January's transfer window as the France international is being courted by a number of clubs, including English Premier League duo Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United, who are reportedly looking at loan deals. The 26-year-old is playing his second full season with the French champions but has fallen out of favour with head coach Luis Enrique, opening the door for a departure from the Parc des Princes as early as this month, despite arriving just over 18 months ago for a transfer fee of almost $90 million.

Spurs and the Red Devils are not the only names being linked with Kolo Muani this winter; Juventus and Aston Villa have also been mentioned as possible destinations amid questions over the futures of Dusan Vlahovic and Jhon Duran, while United could still try to bring Marcus Rashford into the team. Chelsea's Christopher Nkunku appears to be the only credible candidate when it comes to PSG's hoped-for replacement for the out-of-favour Frenchman in attack in January, and the former Paris academy graduate has been the subject of numerous rumours himself.

But at this early stage of the transfer window, little seems certain, beyond the fact that we will be hearing a lot about Kolo Muani in the coming weeks, with no guarantee that he will play much - if at all - for the Ligue 1 leaders as the UEFA Champions League returns soon. So how has his reputation remained relatively high despite his largely unsuccessful time at the capital club so far?

The answer to that lies largely in Kolo Muani's exceptional form when he spent a season playing for Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga, which put him on the radar of a number of top European clubs who clearly haven't forgotten about him. The Bondy-born talent scored 17 goals and provided 11 assists in all competitions for the Bundesliga side after scoring 12 goals and providing four assists in his final season with Nantes before initially leaving France in 2022.

Hugo Ekitike is currently experiencing a similar breakthrough with the Germans, so it is somewhat fitting that Kolo Muani has traded his excellent previous form with the Eagles for his current predicament in Paris, as Ekitike has also been sidelined. With seven goals and five assists in all competitions in his first season at the Parc des Princes, it's not exactly as if the PSG number 23 has been a total flop with two more goals and an assist when given a chance by Luis Enrique so far this year.

The paradox of Kolo Muani at the moment is that he has played more important minutes and scored more goals for Les Bleus than he has for PSG: three goals and an assist in the UEFA Nations League and another goal for the French at UEFA Euro 2024 last summer. He is not at all part of his Spanish boss's plans in Paris, having been the starting striker for Didier Deschamps, while captain Kylian Mbappe has not featured for the national team since his move to Real Madrid.

That Luis Enrique doesn't see him as an integral part of his tactical vision in Paris hardly shows that Kolo Muani has become a bad player overnight, and the 26-year-old is still quite young despite being overpriced when PSG bought him. He can play out wide as well as alongside a second central attacking figure, his pace and ability to run with the ball make him an interesting profile for clubs, which explains why his reputation remains high.

The question now is whether one of Kolo Muani's suitors can strike an acceptable deal with Paris in January to bring him in this month, giving him the rest of the season to get back to his best form in a league like the EPL that suits his strengths. Should that happen, the Frenchman should be relatively easy to rehabilitate as playing regularly again can't be as damaging as it was in the early months of this season, which if allowed to continue into the summer could do real damage.