Newcastle to fight PSG for the signature of Rayan Cherki?

According to information obtained and revealed by L’Equipe on Saturday, PSG will make another go at signing Lyon’s forward and 19-year-old French prospect Rayan Cherki next summer. They might not be alone and instead joined by Newcastle United.

Luis Campos, the sporting advisor of PSG, is “far from giving up” on signing the wunderkind, and “hopes to achieve that goal next summer” having failed to land Lyon’s forward a few months ago.

Lyon’s president Jean-Michel Aulas straight rejected all offers arriving at his office last January. The final offer submitted by Paris Saint-Germain throughout the winter transfer market is quoted at €20m by the outlet, adding that the aforementioned sum already included some bonuses.

On Saturday, L’Equipe revealed that “several big English and German clubs” are getting involved in the pursuit of Cherki’s signature, particularly mentioning Newcastle United as the most threatening option when it comes to signing Cherki.

“Newcastle started a project built around a young core of players with high potential and those are the main targets of the club,” says L’Equipe. The Premier League club “made initial contacts last winter,” reveals the French outlet, although they “never got much further with their approach.”

Of course, any sort of bidding war for Cherki, whether or not the interest ends up being real from Newcastle’s side, would make Cherki’s price raise and complicate matters for a financially struggling PSG that will need to fix their accounts next season to comply with Financial Fair Play rules. That could help Newcastle submit a stronger offer for the services of the players that ultimately convinces Lyon’s president over whatever terms PSG can present.

Cherki has yet to play for the senior France national team, but he’s completed game at all underage levels from the U16 to the U21 through the U19 team.

The French forward can ably play on both wings and he’s been at Lyon since 2010 when he joined the Academy of the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region club in France. Cherki debuted with Lyon’s first team in the 2019-20 season, when he played 13 games in all competitions scoring three goals for OL.

His role in the club has only grown from that point on, with Cherki appearing in 30, 20, and 29 (through March) games in the last three seasons including this one. Here are Rayan Cherki’s most-similar players according to FBref.com, and his statistics in the Ligue 1 throughout his professional career.

Lionel Messi? Neymar? Ousmane Dembele? Vini Jr.? Not bad for a start! No need to mention, the lad has yet to turn 20 years old, which he will do next August.

Cherki’s under contract at Lyon through June 2024, another interesting nugget of information to keep in mind as the French club and the youngster will enter a pivotal offseason in which they will need to decide whether or not they want to extend their partnership by singing a new long-term deal... or just move on with Lyon opting to sale the player for a profit before he leaves for free a little over a year from now.

Color me excited!