Premier League target Rayan Cherki evasive on Lyon future | OneFootball

It promises to be an emotional night at the Groupama Stadium on Saturday night as Olympique Lyonnais bid farewell to captain and academy product Alexandre Lacazette (33) for a second time. As confirmed by Paulo Fonseca, the former Arsenal forward will leave the club upon the expiry of his contract at the end of the season.

Another academy product could also be on the way out – Rayan Cherki (21). It is even likely that the playmaker will leave Lyon in the summer. The club’s financial difficulties have been well documented and Cherki won’t be lacking in suitors willing to pay the fee required to acquire his services. As per Le Parisien, OL may only earn €22.5m from the sale of the France youth international; that release clause was agreed when the player signed a one-year contract extension back in September, ensuring he wouldn’t leave on a free this summer.

Cherki pinning Lyon goodbye letter?

Liverpool, Manchester City, and Tottenham Hotspur have all enquired about the forward, according to Le Parisien. Speaking on Thursday, Cherki – predictably – gave little away when pressed on his future. “I don’t know if it will be my last game (for Lyon, against SCO Angers on Saturday). I know that I have given everything for my club, that I’ve done everything possible for OL, because it is a club that I will never forget and that will forever be in my heart. I stayed when lots of players left, and I have no regrets. Whatever happens, I will give everything until the last minute at this club,” said Cherki, whose response can equally be read as a goodbye letter.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle