Manchester City is reportedly set to make an official offer to Ligue 1 side Lyon very soon, having successfully reached an agreement on personal terms with 21-year-old attacking midfielder Rayan Cherki. This information comes via reports from Fabrizio Romano. The Premier League club is said to be leading the pursuit for the French international, potentially seeing him as a creative replacement for the outgoing Kevin De Bruyne.
Notably, Manchester City withdrew their interest in Bayer Leverkusen`s highly-rated Florian Wirtz after being reportedly deterred by the expected total cost of his transfer. City apparently views Cherki as a more financially viable alternative compared to Wirtz, who is widely expected to join Liverpool.
According to Romano, Pep Guardiola appears to have facilitated Man City`s move for Cherki, with the personal terms agreement signaling significant progress. The Italian reporter adds that the Premier League club intends to submit an official bid to Lyon within the next few hours to try and complete the transfer. Initial discussions between the two clubs are said to have commenced over the past weekend.
Cherki is currently with the senior France squad, known as Les Bleus. They are scheduled to face Spain this Thursday in Stuttgart for the semi-finals of the Nations League competition.
