Scouts from several English clubs including West Ham, Manchester United and Liverpool attended Marseille’s’s 1-1 draw with Lyon on Sunday night to watch Georges-Kévin N’Koudou.

The 20-year-old, who moved to the Stade Vélodrome last summer from Nantes for £1m, has attracted attention for his performances this season despite his club struggling in mid-table in Ligue 1. N’Koudou has scored eight times and laid on four assists in all competitions, meaning he has contributed to more goals than any other player under the age of 21 in Europe’s top five leagues – ahead of the Manchester City and Barcelona target Leroy Sané of Schalke and Tottenham’s Dele Alli.

Born in Versailles, the France Under-21 international began his career at Paris Saint-Germain before joining Nantes in 2013. Marseille are understood to be reluctant to let him leave in January but are bracing themselves for offers in the summer, with a fee of around €20m expected to be enough to persuade them to sell.

West Ham and Tottenham also retain an interest in the striker Michy Batshuayi, who signed a lucrative new contract earlier this month. The Belgium striker laid on the assist for Marseille to take the lead against Lyon through the Newcastle loanee Rémy Cabella, meaning Batshuayi has now scored 12 times and set up four goals in Ligue 1 – half of Marseille’s total of 32.

However, Marseille’s president, Vincent Labrune, has said they want to keep the 22-year-old in January and has indicated he will not consider selling for less than €50m. West Ham could now turn their attention to the Galatasaray striker Burak Yilmaz and have also been linked with a move for the Nigeria international Emmanuel Emenike, who plays for Al Ain in Qatar.

Slaven Bilic’s side, Tottenham, Crystal Palace and Aston Villa also made inquiries for the Toulouse striker Wissam Ben Yedder but the 25-year-old has pledged to stay until the summer to help his current club in their battle against relegation.