5 days ago
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Photo by Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images
The Reds are reportedly working on a cut-price deal for the Frenchman.
Given how well Liverpool have started the season, and how much still remains of it, there is, for once, not a broad consensus about exactly where the club needs to make additions in order to improve, either in January transfer window or next summer.
There is also the issue of the unresolved contracts; Mohamed Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold and captain Virgil van Dijk are all on deals that run out in the summer, and whether any, some or all of the three extend their Anfield tenures will undoubtedly be of critical import when Arne Slot and his backroom staff decide what should be on the docket when the Reds go shopping int he near future.
One position that doesn’t seem that important to add to is attacking midfield, where Dominik Szoboszlai and Harvey Elliott — when healthy — are both highly capable contributors. Nevertheless, according to Fabrice Hawkins of RMC Sport, Rayan Cherki has been pegged as a serious target by the Merseysiders, and he is reportedly available at a cut-rate fee.
An outstanding creator and phenomenal dribbler — the 21-year old ranked fourth in successful take-ons in Europe’s top five leagues last year, and is currently second for shot-creating actions this season — Cherki has been a starter for Lyon since he was 18, and while the fact that he signed a new deal with his childhood club as recently as September should put paid to any idea that he’s about to move on, particularly for a fee as low as the €25m that has been suggested, the contract only extending him to 2026 could indicate that it was a deal signed mainly to ensure the club would get some sort of compensation for a player who otherwise would have been able to leave freely at the end of this season.
A classic half-space merchant, the impressively two-footed French international loves to cut inside from either flank and drive at a backline, beating defenders and finding killer balls for team-mates with equal ease. That versatility — along with the incredible price for such a talent — could be what makes this deal make sense, as Cherki could potentially start in three positions across the Reds’ front four, a capacity that would become exponentially more valuable should Mohamed Salah not extend his tenure on Merseyside.
It might not rank that highly on the probability scale — this sort of deal would attract the attention of a lot of clubs across the continent — but signing Rayan Cherki would represent an exciting move for the Reds as Slot properly begins to build his first Liverpool team.
