3 weeks ago
21
PLAYER FOCUS
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Manchester City returned to the Etihad Stadium for the first time this season against Tottenham Hotspur in fine spirits after extending their unbeaten run. It also represented a chance for Rayan Cherki to make his full debut. But Thomas Frank's men ruined their homecoming, coming away with a shock 2-0 win thanks to first-half goals from Brennan Johnson and João Palhinha.
Amidst a sea of change in Manchester, the six-time Premier League champions are hoping to relaunch their title challenge in 2025/26, armed with a refreshed squad and a revitalised Pep Guardiola system. City fans are still reeling from losing their long-serving playmaker Kevin De Bruyne, but with Cherki, they may just have another star within their ranks.
The Frenchman arrived from Olympique Lyon in July and delivered a debut goal in the 4-0 win over Wolves at Molineux after coming off the bench, and he clearly did enough to impress Guardiola to earn his full debut against Spurs at the Etihad on Saturday. The Catalan boss would have been delighted with one of his other new additions, Tijjani Reijnders, a €46m signing from AC Milan, after scoring one and creating another on his debut. But it's not solely down to Reijnders to feed the likes of Erling Haaland and Omar Marmoush. Guardiola has taken a gamble on Cherki, who as a maverick type carries some risk and there are some doubts as to whether he can he truly adapt to Guardiola's demands. On his full debut, Transfermarktzeroed in on Cherki as part of our new Player Focus feature.
Player Focus: Rayan Cherki
He's only 22, but it definitely feels as if Cherki has been around for a long time. It's partly true, given he was handed a first taste of senior football at 16 with Lyon and has been a regular ever since. But the attacking midfielder is still remarkably fresh and plays with a youthful exuberance. He glides across the pitch with the ball, dances around defenders and cleanly strikes the ball in a way that is starkly reminiscent of the effervescent Eden Hazard. His goal against Wolves from the bench was a clear example of this, and his low strike into the corner from 20 yards was almost nonchalant.
There have been some pertinent questions asked about Cherki's ability to close down his opponents off the ball, which is surely a prerequisite when joining a Guardiola team. That would be put to the test in his central No.10 role behind Haaland, where he would be required to move in between the pockets of space. Contributing to the press would be as crucial as threading intricate passes into the front men. His first touch of the game exemplified his willingness to get forward as quickly as possible, collecting the ball on the edge of the box and immediately trying to slide in Haaland. On that occasion, Cristian Romero was able to nullify the situation. A couple of robust challenges followed and Cherki began to idle in the final third while Marmoush and Oscar Bobb threatened in the wide areas.
With two first-half tackles completed, no one could accuse him of not doing his bit. But at the other end, Cherki's lack of involvement was slightly disappointing. His only sight of goal came via a long ball forward and Djed Spence made a smart interception to snuff out the chance. He did show a glimpse of his ability with a delicious cross for Erling Haaland, only to see the Norwegian head over on the stroke of half time. He began the second half with a wonderfully-crafted through ball that almost got City back into the game, demonstrating his vision and precise weight of his passes. A poor Haaland pass then denied him what would've been a simple tap-in, and with just 54 minutes on the clock, Cherki was hooked for Bernardo Silva to bring a premature end to his afternoon.
Market value analysis
It's still incredibly early in his City career for anyone to draw any permanent conclusions. Cherki must be allowed time to settle into this City side and acclimatise to life in England, as well as adapting to the Premier League's fast and furious nature. He can't be expected to set the world alight every week, not even Mohamed Salah does that, and his debut goal was an encouraging sign of what he can do.
This performance suggested there may be a few things he still has to improve - the key one being match fitness - before the fans see the best version of Cherki. His market value of €45m suggests that City landed themselves a bargain, given that they invested the best part of €36.5m to capture Cherki earlier this summer - an €8.5m haircut on his market value. Only two games into his career, Cherki has made a steady start and there's little to suggest his market value is too high at this point.
