Chelsea are considering a potential move for Lyon wonderkid Rayan Cherki - and the 19-year-old is certainly living up to the hype with his performances for France Under-21s. The young Frenchman enjoyed a breakout season for Lyon last term, scoring five goals and providing a further six assists for the French outfit.
According to Simon Phillips on Substack, the Blues are considering an approach for Cherki this summer. Mason Mount is expected to complete a £60million transfer to Manchester United in the coming weeks leaving Mauricio Pochettino needing a replacement for the England international.
Chelsea have seen the departures of Kai Havertz, Mateo Kovacic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Kalidou Koulibaly, N'Golo Kante and Edouard Mendy this summer. Cherki's performances have already caught the attention of Paris Saint-Germain superstar Kylian Mbappe with the French striker suggesting the 19-year-old is playing at a level way beyond his age.
After Cherki recorded two goals and two assists in one game for Lyon at the age of just 16, Mbappe praised the teenager with a post on Twitter, which read: “Don’t talk to him too much about age, huh." Lyon are understood to have set a £43million asking price for their talented playmaker, as per But Football Club.
Cherki is now living up to Mbappe's hype as he continues to put in brilliant displays at the UEFA Under-21s European Championships. The 19-year-old has taken his tally for the tournament to two goals with a stunning strike against Ukraine in the quarter-finals.
Cherki showed brilliant composure to receive the ball inside the penalty box, drifting past a defender before firing the ball past the goalkeeper to give France the lead. However, Les Bleus then found themselves 2-1 down with Chelsea star Mykhailo Mudryk grabbing an assist for Ukraine's second goal.
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Mudryk also won the penalty that allowed Ukraine to equalise following Cherki's opener in the first half. Ukraine went on to progress into the semi-finals with a 3-1 win against France, joining England in the last four.
The two players could line up alongside each other at Stamford Bridge next term under Pochettino if the Blues opt to pursue a deal for Cherki. The Frenchman can operate as a No.10 or as a winger and would fit into Todd Boehly's long-term vision of signing the best talents from across the world.
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