Both Man United and Chelsea have valid reasons for wanting to beef up their first-team squads in the current transfer window.
At present, the Red Devils are in eighth place in the Premier League with the Blues in ninth and just a point behind.
Neither club are likely to have countenanced being so low down in the table at this stage of the campaign, so a top signing or two could change the course of their seasons.
It’s often thought that a team with a solid defence can act as the foundation for and springboard to success, and with that in mind, a central defender of note would be a priority.
Chelsea have one in Levi Colwill but their injury concerns have forced him to cover the left-back position for much of the current campaign.
Man United have suffered from seeing their centre-backs either lose form or be injured too.
Jean-Clair Todibo, 24, is a player that has continued to make a name for himself at Nice, owned by Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
That might suggest that Man United could be in the box seat for the player’s services ahead of any other interested party.
Unfortunately for them and for Chelsea, he’s going nowhere in the current window.
“As we’ve said since the offset, we are working on stability, and stability is keeping your best players,” Nice sporting director, Florent Ghisolfi, was quoted as saying by 90Min.
“Jean-Clair and (Khephren) Thuram are definitely that, as players and as leaders as they are vice-captains. We absolutely want to keep them.”