Real Madrid: 3 things you need to know about transfer target Rayan Cherki
French Football Academies have surfaced as the most prosperous in world football recently. A lot of the new talents and prospect stars are from different parts of France. Many are key transfer targets for Real Madrid. The likes of Kylian Mbappe and Eduardo Camavinga are popular examples.
However, there is another young attacking midfielder who has already been compared to the likes of Lionel Messi and Karim Benzema. Besides, even Kylian Mbappe took to Twitter to express his appreciation for this young man. He is none other than Lyon’s Rayan Cherki. Cherki is someone, who has already expressed his desire to join the Royal White club in the future, and in my opinion, Real Madrid would be lucky to have him. Here is everything you need to know about the youngster, divided into three convenient segments.
1. Rayan Cherki’s football beginnings
Rayan Cherki was born on August 17, 2003, to parents who were of Algerian and Italian descent. He started playing football formally in 2009 when he was just six years old. His brothers were always into football and the sport came naturally to the boy. He joined Saint-Priest and in the very next year was recruited by Lyon for their Youth Academy. His time there made him one of their best prospects currently.
Cherki moved quickly within the ranks. He played for the U17 side as a 15-year-old and soon transitioned to the U19 side in the Coupe Gambardella. He also had a brilliant campaign with Lyon’s team for the UEFA Youth League. His impressive performances landed him with contract extensions. He quickly proved himself enough to be given the first-team action at just 16 years of age.
He made his senior debut for Lyon on November 27, 2019, in a Champions League game against Zenit. He appeared as a second-half substitute for Maxwell Cornet in a 0-2 loss in the St. Petersburg Stadium. His first goal for the senior team came in January 2004, in a Coupe de France game against Bourg-Peronnas. With that strike, he became Lyon’s youngest ever goalscorer for the senior team.