Rayan Cherki has announced that his transfer to Manchester City is close, though Lyon have reportedly changed their demands for the attacking midfielder.
Man City have allowed Kevin De Bruyne to leave the club after deciding against offering him a contract extension. While Phil Foden is already in the squad, Pep Guardiola wants a new No 10 to move to the Etihad and help replace legendary figure De Bruyne.
City have previously shown interest in both Bayer Leverkusen star Florian Wirtz and Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White.
But they have switched their attention to Cherki as he can be signed for a far lower price.
Wirtz could cost as much as €150million (£126.5m) when joining Liverpool this summer, while Chelsea are spying a deal for £60m-rated Gibbs-White.
TEAMtalk revealed on May 29 that City are accelerating their move for Cherki after the 21-year-old said yes to joining them.
Cherki shone on his senior international debut on Thursday, scoring a fantastic volley in France’s 5-4 Nations League defeat to Spain.
After the match, the playmaker was asked about his potential move to City. He told French TV show Telefoot: “Yes… it’s getting done. But you already know my answer, everybody knows.
“But there’s still a game to play. Now we have to enjoy and give everything, but after it will be done.”
It emerged on Thursday that City had begun the bidding for Cherki at €23m (£19m). However, Lyon want €35-40m (up to £34m) before selling their academy graduate.
L’Equipe reporter Loic Tanzi has since provided more clarity on the situation. He states that City made the opening €23m offer verbally after learning of a clause between Cherki and Lyon which means he can leave for a cut-price fee.
It has been widely reported that there is a gentleman’s agreement in place between Cherki and Lyon after they prevented him from joining Paris Saint-Germain last summer.
Despite this, and the fact the player’s contract expires in June 2026, Lyon no longer have any intention of accepting €23m for Cherki.
Instead, City will likely have to get closer to the French club’s €35-40m demands before they can strike a deal.
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Rayan Cherki agrees Man City contract
Fabrizio Romano has confirmed on his YouTube channel that City have agreed personal terms with Cherki and his agent.
“Cherki is ready to be the next signing at Manchester City. As I told you two days ago, the agreement is done between Cherki and Man City on the contract,” he said.
“Agreement done between Man City and the agent of the player. Now, negotiations underway [between] Man City, Olympique Lyon.
“The price will be higher than €30m (£25m), this is the feeling at Lyon.
“The expectation is for Rayan Cherki to become a new Man City player soon. It will be an excellent addition for Man City, a player wanted by several clubs in Germany, England and Italy.”
Cherki is due to become City’s third capture of the summer window after Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Ait-Nouri.
Both Reijnders and Ait-Nouri will undergo medicals this weekend before officially being announced as City players.
City will pay AC Milan an initial fee of €55-57m for midfielder Reijnders, though the deal could reach €70m (£59m) through add-ons.
Ait-Nouri had been expected to cost City around £50m (€59m), though they have managed to agree a cheaper deal Wolverhampton Wanderers in a brilliant move.
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