Premier League clubs Liverpool, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly made enquiries about signing Lyon midfielder Rayan Cherki.
The French youth international has impressed this season, recording 12 goals and 19 assists in all competitions – including a stoppage time equaliser against Manchester United in the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final.
The 21-year-old was on the verge of joining Paris Saint-Germain last summer before opting to sign a new deal with his boyhood club.
Despite remaining at Lyon, Cherki hasn’t shied away from a potential move.
Asked on Sunday if he would feel good in the PSG dressing room, he replied: ‘Oh yes absolutely, I know them all.
‘Ousmane [Dembele] & Bradley [Barcola] are good friends of mine. When you have good chemistry on the pitch, it shows off off the pitch too.’
Premier League clubs Manchester City, Liverpool and Spurs are reportedly interested in Cherki
The 21-year-old French youth international is reportedly available for a fee of just £19million
He scored a 95th minute equaliser in the Europa League quarter-final first leg against United
But the Champions League finalists, who dumped Arsenal, Liverpool and Aston Villa out of this season’s competition, are no longer interested in his signature, putting Premier League sides in prime position, according to Le Parisien, with the star available for just £19million (€22.5m).
Cherki joined Lyon in 2010, spending nine years in their youth ranks, before making his first senior appearance aged 16 in 2019.
But Lyon have suffered with financial issues and were handed a transfer ban and a provisional relegation to Ligue 2 in January, after reporting debt of £424m (€505m).
Last summer, Fulham agreed a £16.7m deal for the winger but he rejected the move.
Meanwhile, aged 15, he met with Manchester United officials and was given a tour of Old Trafford and Carrington.
At the time L’Equipe waxed lyrical of Cherki’s genius and wrote that ‘Manchester United is under the spell of the 15-year-old player’.
Cherki won a silver medal as part of Thierry Henry’s under-23 side in the 2024 Paris Olympics
Cherki is yet to make his senior international debut but was part of Thierry Henry’s under-23 side that won a silver medal the Paris Olympics last summer.
Lyon sit in seventh place, three points behind Nice, Lille and Strasbourg, with just one fixture remaining this season.
They were knocked out of the Europa League after a stunning comeback by Manchester United, who scored three goals in a dramatic final seven minutes of extra time to win the tie 7-6 on aggregate and reach the semi-finals.
