Manchester City are closing in on the signing of Lyon’s Rayan Cherki.
The opening phase of this summer’s transfer window has been a busy one for the Manchester club as Pep Guardiola sets about rebuilding his squad after a tough 2024/25 campaign.
A midfield revamp is at the heart of the rebuild, with Man City close to signing Tijjani Reijnders from AC Milan, while the Premier League club continue to work on a deal for Cherki.
Cherki has been the talk of the French media and the football world after his cameo for France against Spain on Thursday, and when asked about the midfielder ahead of a match against Germany on Sunday, Kylian Mbappe has revealed how the national team squad currently feels about the 21-year-old.
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France dressing room knows how good Rayan Cherki is
In 27 minutes against Spain, Cherki would produce a goal and an assist for France, helping Les Bleus go from 5-1 down to a more respectable scoreline of 5-4.
The 21-year-old impressed the football world with his quality and speaking during a press conference on Saturday, Mbappe stated that the France dressing knew how good the Lyon star was already before he made his international debut on Thursday.
“We tried to support him as best we could so that he felt like himself and did what he did on the pitch,” Mbappe told the media at his press conference. “His qualities are obvious, we knew it, we never doubted it.
“He will bring us what he needs. Now, everything starts with his head, we wanted him to feel good so that his feet speak for themselves.”
Cherki is confident that his move to Man City will get over the line, as a transfer fee is all that stands between the 21-year-old and his move to the Premier League as the France international looks to impress once again this weekend.
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When is Rayan Cherki back in action
With a move just around the corner, Man City fans will want to get every glimpse they can of Cherki before the 21-year-old joins the Premier League club, and an opportunity will be provided once again this weekend.
Following his impressive performance against Spain, the midfielder is back in action again on Sunday against Germany in the UEFA Nations League third-place playoff.
The contest will take place at the MHPArena in Stuttgart, with the match set to start at 2pm (UK time) for any Man City fans that want to tune in.
Cherki all but confirmed his move to Man City after the Spain game; therefore, the next time the 21-year-old plays after this will likely be at the FIFA Club World Cup in sky blue.
