Rayan Cherki's Man City transfer moves closer as Lyon star drops major hint

Lyon attacker Rayan Cherki has dropped a major hint that a move to Manchester City is imminent. 

Cherki has made 185 competitive first-team appearances since working his way through the youth ranks at French side Lyon.

The attacker enjoyed an impressive 2024-25 campaign, scoring 12 goals and 20 assists in 44 matches across all competitions.

Those performances caught the attention of a number of potential suitors, including Premier League giants Man City. 

A recent report claimed that the Citizens have already reached an agreement over personal terms with the France international.

Cherki drops Man City transfer hint

As a result, Man City will now be focusing on negotiating a fee with Lyon for a player who is set to enter the final 12 months of his contract. 

Man City supporters were given a taste of Cherki’s talent in France’s dramatic 5-4 defeat to Spain in the UEFA Nations League semi-finals.

Cherki came off the bench to fire home an unstoppable strike to spark a late fightback, which ultimately proved to be in vain as Les Bleus lost by one goal. 

Speaking after the match, the 21-year-old appeared to hint that progress is being made in a potential move to Pep Guardiola’s side.

“My future? Yes, it is taking shape,” Cherki told Telefoot. “But you know my response, everyone knows it.

“But there is still a match to play (against Germany on Sunday). Now, we have to make the most of it and give everything.”

Man City working on multiple deals

While Cherki is focusing on the third-place playoff against Germany, Man City are working on bringing in a number of reinforcements ahead of the Club World Cup in the USA.

In addition to Cherki, the Citizens are said to be closing in on signing left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri from Wolverhampton Wanderers. 

They have also reached an agreement over a deal to recruit Netherlands international Tijjani Reijnders from Italian side AC Milan.

Man City will kick off their Club World Cup campaign with a game against Wydad AC on June 18, before they conclude the group stage with matches against Al Ain and Juventus.