Rayan Cherki: Lyon's danger man | OneFootball

Manchester United are in France to take on Olympique Lyonnais and they will have to be wary of danger man Rayan Cherki who is lighting up Ligue 1.

The 21-year-old's performances have drawn attention from a plethora of Europe's biggest clubs and one of his current teammates recently told BBC Sport that he was 'one of the best natural talents' he'd ever seen.

The Lyon-born attacker made his debut for the club in 2019 at the tender age of 16 and has since made 177 appearances for the French side.

Still just 21, Cherki has improved immensely each season and has so far scored 26 and assisted 42 goals for his side.

"He is the best natural talent I've ever seen," former Ainsley Maitland-Niles said about him ahead of this evening's clash. "An absolute master, a wizard with the ball."

Indeed, Cherki's development is reflected in his 2024/25 numbers. The French youth international has made nine assists in Ligue 1 this season, the most of anyone in the division. That's also a number that ranks him joint eighth in Europe's 'big leagues' alongside the likes of Bruno Fernandes, Omar Marmoush, and Bradley Barcola.

That number is also a big improvement on last season where Cherki assisted just six goals all season – still enough to be ranked eight in Ligue 1.

However, if Lyon had the kind of attacking talent that other clubs possess then those numbers would likely be much higher.

Cherki ranks first in Europe's top five leagues for expected assists per 90 minutes with a xAG/90 total of 0.47 – that's ahead of Michael Olise and Kevin De Bruyne (0.46), Lamine Yamal and Bradley Barcola (0.45), and Raphinha (0.42).

"He is taking chances, assists and dragging us up the pitch by taking people on and nutmegging them – he is a genius," Maitland-Niles continued.

"He is two-footed, has no fear, keeps going and going, can get past people with such ease, such finesse. He is now working for the team off the ball and has gone to another level this season."

So far the numbers for the youngster look good but it's clear as his prodigious talent develops, they'll likely get better.