Liverpool reportedly made an enquiry into the availability of Lyon’s forward Rayan Cherki last year, and now the 21-year-old has announced he is likely to depart in the summer.
The Reds are closing in on their first signing of the summer with Jeremie Frimpong to undergo a medical on Monday, but their business is far from finished.
Darwin Nunez is expected to depart and there remains speculation over Luis Diaz and Federico Chiesa‘s futures, meaning Liverpool’s forward line will need tending to.
Cherki was an interesting name to emerge at the end of last year and he continues to be linked to Anfield, and expect more of that after he announced his intentions to leave Lyon.
After Lyon’s 2-0 win over Angers in the last game of the season on Saturday, Cherki was teary-eyed as he left the field and later announced his summer intentions in the mixed zone.
According to Dahia Hattabi, the 21-year-old made it known that he is “likely” to leave Lyon in the summer but “that one must always be careful with the transfer window.”
“Thanks to OL, the coach, the staff, the president, my teammates and all people at the club,” he said.
The Frenchman has a gentleman’s agreement that he can leave in the summer if a club agrees to pay €22.5 million (£18.9m) for his services, a bargain for a player of his experience.
The 21-year-old has played 185 times for his boyhood club, and he would tick the versatility box Arne Slot seeks as the forward can play on either wing or as an attacking No. 10.
He is young, versatile and a significantly more affordable option than Florian Wirtz, for example, and would allow the club to still invest heavily in other positions.
It would be opportunistic with minimal risk and Le Parisien reports that Liverpool, Man City and Tottenham have all enquired about signing Cherki.
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Cherki is enjoying his best season in his young career with 12 goals and 20 assists in 44 appearances – and has only missed four games in 2024/25.
With Lyon facing financial difficulties that led to provisional relegation, there is a deal to be had but it remains to be seen if Liverpool will pursue Cherki, who created more clear-cut goalscoring opportunities (22) than any other Ligue 1 player this season.
