Midfielders like David Silva come once in every few years and even for a club like Manchester City who are experts at recruiting players, signing the Spaniard’s rightful heir has been an impossible task for them.
Oleksandr Zinchenko lauded David Silva by suggesting his former teammate is the smartest player in the history of the game, which highlights how special a footballer he was.
Phil Foden has often drawn comparisons to the Manchester City legend but he is much more of a goalscoring presence to the veteran, who was an elite creator and controller in equal measure.
Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan have helped make up for the World Cup winner’s absence but the reality is that he was the complete midfielder, as Pep Guardiola hailed David Silva as one of the standout players he has ever managed.
Rayan Cherki could be Man City’s new David Silva
While Rayan Cherki has plenty to achieve before he can even be mentioned in the same breath as the four-time Premier League winner, he has the attributes to become the successor to his throne.
First and foremost, there are obvious stylistic similarities between Cherki and David Silva, with both players having extraordinary left feet, a sublime first touch and the ability to weave past players at will.
But most pertinently, much like the former Valencia midfielder, Cherki, who Thierry Henry called “extraordinary” is also an excellent creator — as evidenced by the fact that he provided 20 assists last season.
Furthermore, one of the many underrated facets about David Silva at Manchester City was how adept he was at forming partnerships with his teammates on the pitch, be it Sergio Aguero or Leroy Sane.
The same seems to be the case with Cherki, who has a synergy with Erling Haaland already — with the Norwegian’s assist for his goal against Al-Ain being one of the many moments where the pair looked like they were on the same wavelength.
Haaland was on the move almost every time the 21-year-old had the ball at his feet as he routinely picked him out in space and against Juventus as well, the highly-rated midfielder almost set him up for a goal with a brilliant cross.
Much like David Silva as well, Cherki is capable of playing in advanced areas of the pitch while also being able to drop deep and run the show due to being similarly technically gifted and intelligent.
Whether he manages to replicate Silva at City remains to be seen but the signs look positive to say the least.
David Silva has already shared his verdict about Cherki’s move to Man City
It seems like the Sky Blues icon is fan of the fleet-footed attacker.
David Silva gave his seal of approval to Cherki joining Manchester City by commenting the ‘top emoji’ on the club’s official Instagram post.
Pep Guardiola has every reason to be bullish about the French international’s chances of succeeding at City purely due to Silva seeming to be on board with the move.
