A review of the hit rate on the signings made by the 20 clubs of Ligue 1 for the 2016/17 season. We identified 163 signings for the first-team squad; 159 are included in the hit-rate calculation. Signings that did not earn relevant minutes during the season are classified as unsuccessful, except for youth investments (under 23 years old), classified separately and outside the count (4 cases, flagged in the appendix). Hit-rate scoring: successful signings count as a full point; fair ones, half a point.
Club ranking by hit rate
| Club | League position | Signings | Evaluated | Successful | Fair | Unsuccessful | Hit rate % |
|---|
| 1º | Bordeaux | 6º | 5 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 90% |
| 2º | Nice | 3º | 10 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 60% |
| 3º | Toulouse | 13º | 7 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 50% |
| 4º | Paris Saint Germain | 2º | 6 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 50% |
| 5º | Monaco | 1º | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 50% |
| 6º | Lyon | 4º | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 50% |
| 7º | Marseille | 5º | 12 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 46% |
| 8º | Guingamp | 10º | 9 | 9 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 44% |
| 9º | Nancy | 19º | 12 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 42% |
| 10º | Metz | 14º | 15 | 15 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 40% |
| 11º | Angers | 12º | 11 | 11 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 36% |
| 12º | Dijon | 16º | 14 | 14 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 36% |
| 13º | Lille | 11º | 7 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 36% |
| 14º | Nantes | 7º | 7 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 36% |
| 15º | Saint Etienne | 8º | 6 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 25% |
| 16º | Montpellier | 15º | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 25% |
| 17º | Bastia | 20º | 9 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 22% |
| 18º | Caen | 17º | 7 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 21% |
| 19º | Lorient | 18º | 7 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 21% |
| 20º | Rennes | 9º | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 8% |
Successful signings count as a full point; Fair ones (median performance), half a point; Unsuccessful ones, zero. The difference between Signings and Evaluated are the youth investments (under-23), listed in the appendix. The full list for each club is in the appendix at the end.
The 5 best-performing signings
| Player | Club | Minutes | G+A | Avg rating |
|---|
| Bafétimbi Gomis | Marseille | 2604 | 20+3 | 7.20 |
| Wylan Cyprien | Nice | 2432 | 8+3 | 7.31 |
| Kamil Glik | Monaco | 3240 | 6+2 | 7.15 |
| Marçal | Guingamp | 2689 | 0+7 | 7.20 |
| Karl Toko Ekambi | Angers | 2439 | 7+4 | 7.08 |
Methodology
Only genuine signings for the first-team squad are considered (academy promotions, loan returns and internal moves are excluded). The performance of each signing is measured by the player's output over the season — minutes on the pitch, goal involvement and average match rating — in comparison with the other players in the competition.
Appendix — Signings by club
Full list of the signings identified, with each player's figures for the season.
* Youth investment (under 23 years old, no game time in the season) — classified separately, outside the hit-rate calculation.
** Matches and minutes counted across the fixtures analysed by the team.
Angers (11 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Baptiste Santamaria | 37 | 3075 | 0 | 0 |
| Karl Toko Ekambi | 31 | 2439 | 7 | 4 |
| Famara Diédhiou | 31 | 2285 | 8 | 1 |
| Mathieu Michel | 23 | 2070 | 0 | 0 |
| Issa Cissokho | 13 | 1159 | 0 | 2 |
| Jonathan Bamba | 16 | 834 | 3 | 2 |
| Pablo Martinez | 9 | 625 | 0 | 0 |
| Kévin Bérigaud | 13 | 465 | 0 | 1 |
| Flavien Tait | 11 | 436 | 2 | 2 |
| Jamel Saihi | 5 | 235 | 0 | 0 |
| Dickson Nwakaeme | 6 | 86 | 0 | 0 |
Bastia (9 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Allan Saint-Maximin | 33 | 2614 | 3 | 2 |
| Pierre Bengtsson | 29 | 2536 | 1 | 1 |
| Enzo Crivelli | 23 | 1992 | 10 | 1 |
| Lenny Nangis | 30 | 1377 | 0 | 2 |
| Abdelhamid El Kaoutari | 17 | 1262 | 0 | 0 |
| Prince Oniangué | 14 | 1125 | 3 | 0 |
| Thievy Bifouma | 14 | 708 | 2 | 0 |
| Lindsay Rose | 9 | 688 | 0 | 0 |
| Jerson Cabral | 6 | 62 | 0 | 0 |
Bordeaux (5 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Youssouf Sabaly | 30 | 2647 | 0 | 4 |
| Jérémy Toulalan | 30 | 2607 | 0 | 0 |
| François Kamano | 30 | 1688 | 6 | 4 |
| Jérémy Ménez | 26 | 1473 | 3 | 2 |
| Younousse Sankharé | 16 | 1391 | 4 | 3 |
Caen (7 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Ivan Santini | 34 | 2887 | 15 | 2 |
| Frédéric Guilbert | 23 | 2041 | 0 | 1 |
| Romain Genevois | 13 | 860 | 0 | 0 |
| Steed Malbranque | 13 | 361 | 0 | 0 |
| Pape Sane | 13 | 332 | 1 | 0 |
| Matthieu Dreyer | 2 | 180 | 0 | 0 |
| Mouhamadou Dabo | 2 | 147 | 0 | 0 |
Dijon (14 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Baptiste Reynet | 37 | 3330 | 0 | 0 |
| Cédric Varrault | 32 | 2795 | 3 | 0 |
| Fouad Chafik | 27 | 2399 | 0 | 1 |
| Frédéric Sammaritano | 31 | 1900 | 4 | 4 |
| Florent Balmont | 23 | 1719 | 0 | 2 |
| Vincent Ruefli | 19 | 1482 | 0 | 2 |
| Romain Amalfitano | 26 | 1416 | 0 | 0 |
| Yunis Abdelhamid | 18 | 1311 | 0 | 0 |
| Johan Gastien | 15 | 884 | 0 | 0 |
| Arnold Bouka Moutou | 10 | 753 | 0 | 0 |
| Dylan Bahamboula | 11 | 519 | 1 | 0 |
| Marvin Martin | 12 | 442 | 0 | 1 |
| Jérémie Bela | 14 | 365 | 0 | 1 |
| Benjamin Leroy | 1 | 90 | 0 | 0 |
Guingamp (9 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Karl-Johan Johnsson | 37 | 3279 | 0 | 2 |
| Lucas Deaux | 38 | 3078 | 2 | 5 |
| Marçal | 31 | 2689 | 0 | 7 |
| Jordan Ikoko | 27 | 2323 | 0 | 1 |
| Étienne Didot | 28 | 2144 | 1 | 1 |
| Alexandre Mendy | 22 | 801 | 3 | 0 |
| Mathieu Bodmer | 10 | 672 | 0 | 0 |
| Romain Salin | 1 | 90 | 0 | 0 |
| Jonathan Correia Da Fonseca | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Lille (7 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Nicolas de Préville | 30 | 2074 | 14 | 1 |
| Younousse Sankharé | 21 | 1572 | 2 | 1 |
| Julian Palmieri | 22 | 1510 | 1 | 2 |
| Xeka | 13 | 1127 | 1 | 2 |
| Anwar El Ghazi | 12 | 692 | 1 | 0 |
| Ricardo Kishna | 11 | 502 | 0 | 0 |
| Farès Bahlouli | 3 | 97 | 0 | 0 |
Lorient (7 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Arnold Mvuemba | 32 | 2780 | 1 | 1 |
| Steven Moreira | 28 | 2515 | 0 | 3 |
| Michael Ciani | 25 | 2168 | 3 | 0 |
| Mathieu Peybernes | 18 | 1530 | 0 | 0 |
| Cafú | 18 | 1186 | 0 | 2 |
| Alhassan Wakaso | 13 | 681 | 0 | 0 |
| Faïz Selemani | 3 | 63 | 0 | 0 |
Lyon (3 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Maciej Rybus | 18 | 1146 | 0 | 1 |
| Memphis Depay | 16 | 1099 | 5 | 7 |
| Nicolas N'Koulou | 12 | 1080 | 0 | 0 |
Marseille (12 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Hiroki Sakai | 35 | 3014 | 0 | 2 |
| Bafétimbi Gomis | 31 | 2604 | 20 | 3 |
| William Vainqueur | 29 | 2550 | 0 | 1 |
| Morgan Sanson | 17 | 1358 | 1 | 7 |
| Henri Bedimo | 16 | 1172 | 0 | 0 |
| Clinton N'Jie | 22 | 1021 | 4 | 1 |
| Tomáš Hubočan | 13 | 996 | 0 | 0 |
| Patrice Evra | 11 | 873 | 1 | 0 |
| Grégory Sertic | 8 | 653 | 0 | 0 |
| Zinédine Machach | 10 | 416 | 0 | 0 |
| Aaron Leya Iseka | 8 | 260 | 0 | 2 |
| Saîf-Eddine Khaoui * | 9 | 144 | 0 | 0 |
Metz (15 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Simon Falette | 35 | 3090 | 3 | 1 |
| Renaud Cohade | 33 | 2787 | 1 | 4 |
| Georges Mandjeck | 29 | 2339 | 3 | 0 |
| Ivan Balliu | 27 | 2331 | 0 | 5 |
| Cheick Doukouré | 29 | 2260 | 0 | 1 |
| Opa Nguette | 33 | 2230 | 2 | 2 |
| Milan Biševac | 21 | 1835 | 0 | 0 |
| Guido Milan | 22 | 1731 | 1 | 0 |
| Benoît Assou-Ekotto | 18 | 1478 | 0 | 1 |
| Franck Signorino | 17 | 1477 | 0 | 0 |
| Mevlüt Erdinç | 24 | 1404 | 6 | 1 |
| Yann Jouffre | 20 | 1248 | 4 | 2 |
| Cheick Diabaté | 14 | 1056 | 8 | 1 |
| Fallou Diagne | 12 | 1003 | 0 | 0 |
| Florent Mollet | 25 | 884 | 0 | 1 |
Monaco (5 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Kamil Glik | 36 | 3240 | 6 | 2 |
| Djibril Sidibé | 29 | 2322 | 2 | 5 |
| Benjamin Mendy | 25 | 2060 | 0 | 5 |
| Jorge * | 2 | 91 | 1 | 0 |
| Morgan De Sanctis | 1 | 90 | 0 | 0 |
Montpellier (4 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Stéphane Sessègnon | 27 | 2316 | 2 | 2 |
| Yacouba Sylla | 19 | 1076 | 1 | 0 |
| Anthony Vanden Borre | 10 | 795 | 0 | 0 |
| Cédric Mongongu | 3 | 26 | 0 | 0 |
Nancy (12 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Joeffrey Cuffaut | 30 | 2569 | 1 | 1 |
| Julien Cétout | 28 | 2335 | 1 | 2 |
| Guy N'Dy Assembé | 23 | 2046 | 0 | 0 |
| Issiar Dia | 31 | 2003 | 8 | 3 |
| Benoît Pedretti | 26 | 1871 | 1 | 2 |
| Diallo Guidileye | 24 | 1718 | 0 | 2 |
| Loïc Puyo | 22 | 1429 | 2 | 0 |
| Vincent Muratori | 17 | 1401 | 0 | 0 |
| Sergey Chernik | 17 | 1374 | 0 | 0 |
| Youssouf Hadji | 26 | 1295 | 0 | 1 |
| Christophe Mandanne | 20 | 926 | 1 | 1 |
| Anthony Koura | 15 | 764 | 1 | 0 |
Nantes (7 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Lucas Lima | 38 | 3382 | 1 | 2 |
| Diego Carlos | 34 | 2951 | 2 | 0 |
| Préjuce Nakoulma | 11 | 821 | 6 | 0 |
| Nicolaj Thomsen | 13 | 746 | 1 | 0 |
| Alexander Kačaniklić | 17 | 696 | 0 | 2 |
| Felipe Pardo | 13 | 584 | 1 | 0 |
| Sérgio Oliveira | 6 | 109 | 0 | 0 |
Nice (10 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Dante | 33 | 2970 | 0 | 3 |
| Dalbert | 33 | 2873 | 0 | 3 |
| Younès Belhanda | 31 | 2539 | 3 | 6 |
| Wylan Cyprien | 29 | 2432 | 8 | 3 |
| Arnaud Souquet | 26 | 2340 | 1 | 5 |
| Mario Balotelli | 23 | 1742 | 15 | 1 |
| Anastasios Donis | 18 | 443 | 5 | 1 |
| Mounir Obbadi | 6 | 304 | 0 | 0 |
| Arnaud Lusamba | 6 | 253 | 0 | 0 |
| Walter Benítez | 3 | 214 | 0 | 0 |
Paris Saint Germain (6 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Thomas Meunier | 22 | 1692 | 1 | 4 |
| Julian Draxler | 17 | 1017 | 4 | 1 |
| Grzegorz Krychowiak | 11 | 657 | 0 | 0 |
| Hatem Ben Arfa | 23 | 626 | 0 | 1 |
| Jesé Rodríguez | 9 | 262 | 1 | 0 |
| Gonçalo Guedes * | 7 | 139 | 0 | 1 |
Rennes (7 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Ramy Bensebaini | 25 | 1837 | 0 | 0 |
| Aldo Kalulu | 10 | 420 | 0 | 1 |
| Morgan Amalfitano | 6 | 405 | 1 | 0 |
| Clément Chantôme | 7 | 338 | 0 | 0 |
| Afonso Figueiredo | 5 | 258 | 0 | 0 |
| A. Ribelin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Paul Nardi * | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Saint Etienne (6 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Jordan Veretout | 35 | 2946 | 3 | 4 |
| Henri Saivet | 27 | 1770 | 1 | 2 |
| Cheikh M'Bengue | 15 | 1183 | 0 | 1 |
| Bryan Dabo | 14 | 643 | 0 | 1 |
| Jorginho | 5 | 258 | 1 | 1 |
| Dylan Saint-Louis | 1 | 84 | 1 | 0 |
Toulouse (7 signings)
| Player | Matches** | Minutes** | Goals | Assists |
|---|
| Christopher Jullien | 35 | 3149 | 4 | 1 |
| Ola Toivonen | 35 | 1803 | 7 | 2 |
| Jimmy Durmaz | 27 | 1524 | 2 | 1 |
| Corentin Jean | 16 | 1268 | 1 | 2 |
| Andy Delort | 15 | 1227 | 5 | 0 |
| Jessy Pi | 16 | 419 | 0 | 1 |
| Yrondu Musavu-King | 3 | 270 | 0 | 0 |