Rayan Cherki: A Future Star in Football

Rayan Cherki has been tipped for greatness for years. For Eric Sage, who guided him through Lyon’s academy and into the first team, that talent was never in doubt – even when others questioned whether the midfielder would ever fulfil it.

Ahead of Friday’s trip to South London, Sage reflected on those early days with a player now being lined up for one of the biggest creative roles in the game.

“It was a process with him, because a lot of people thought that he would not have success in his career. I did not have this same thought,” Sage said, recalling the conversations that shaped Cherki’s development. “I explained to him: ‘You have a big talent, and I think you can show it in special contexts’. And he did that in his last game against Bournemouth.”

That performance has only strengthened belief inside City that they have found the heir to Kevin De Bruyne. Club executives view Cherki as a long-term successor to the Belgian, a player capable of eventually carrying the side’s attacking imagination.

Sage saw that creative edge up close. He pushed Cherki on the ugly side of the game, knowing the rest would take care of itself.

“You have to give something for the team defensively and keep your talent in attack,” he said. “I had nothing to say to him offensively because he understood the play better than me.”

Opponents, Sage warned, should not focus on what Cherki does with the ball. The real danger lies in allowing him to receive it at all.

“To control him, the best thing is to prevent all the passes to him, because when he has the ball he is able to do things we don't imagine.”

Cherki has described his former coach as a football genius. Sage flipped that compliment straight back.

“I don't know the word for higher than a genius. I am not a genius; he is a genius,” he replied. “To speak about something and to teach something is a step. But to do these things is another step. He is at this level. Maybe God?”