Looking to find their Kevin de Bruyne replacement, Manchester City have now reportedly made their first enquiry to sign an in-demand star who's available for a bargain price this summer.
Man City's frustrating Saints stalemate
With Southampton rock bottom of the Premier League by some distance and already relegated, Manchester City and a returning Erling Haaland looked likelier than ever to put on the ultimate goals show on Saturday. But that proved to be anything but the case.
What the travelling fans got instead was a frustrating stalemate as Southampton secured a point against the odds to move beyond Derby County's points record - much to the relief of those around St Mary's. Man City defender Ruben Dias failed to hide that frustration in his post-match press conference too, choosing to criticise Southampton's defensive approach.
The stalemate will do the confidence of Pep Guardiola's side no favours as they enter the FA Cup final against an in-form Crystal Palace side, who will do more than just try to play against the Citizens.
Meanwhile, as Wembley awaits, so does De Bruyne's fast-approaching farewell. Likely to be an emotional goodbye, the Belgian has just three games remaining of a Manchester City career which has seen him win everything there is to win at the club.
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Just how those at the Etihad replace their star man remains to be seen. Names such as Florian Wirtz have already threatened to steal the headlines, but he could yet choose Bayern Munich over the Premier League. He's not the only target, however, with one Ligue 1 talent now emerging as a serious option.
According to Le Parisien, as relayed by Get French Football News, Manchester City have now made their first enquiry to sign Rayan Cherki from Lyon this summer. The attacking midfielder has impressed many throughout the current campaign and will reportedly be allowed to leave Lyon for just €22.5m (£19m) in the coming months.
Cherki-Lyon-Man-Utd-Europe
The Frenchman may already have some fans of his talent at the Etihad after he embarrassed Andre Onana in Lyon's 2-2 draw against Manchester United in the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final tie. Even though Lyon eventually crashed out in dramatic fashion against the Red Devils, it was often the Cherki show across both legs.
Onana's mistake allowed Cherki to follow up with a chipped effort to equalise late on for his side ahead of what turned out to be a frantic and heartbreaking second leg.
Nonetheless, even without a Europa League semi-final, the 21-year-old has found himself at the centre of praise from the likes of football talent scout Jacek Kulig, who described Cherki's campaign as "amazing" back in April. Now, after impressing, he could be on his way to Manchester City this summer.