It is not often that a target for Crystal Palace is actively being pushed towards a move to Selhurst Park – but that now seems to be the case.
Dougie Freedman – Director of Football at Selhurst Park – has already submitted a bid to sign Tomas Araujo from Benfica as Fulham are close to signing Joachim Andersen.
Now, the Glaswegian could be about to wrap up one of his more simple negotiations at Crystal Palace ahead of transfer deadline day on Friday 30th August…
Lyon pushing Rayan Cherki towards Crystal Palace
A story from Get French Football News now states that Lyon are hoping for Rayan Cherki to join Crystal Palace.
The French giants are said to have told the Direction Nationale du Contrôle de Gestion (DNCG) that they would raise €100m (£85.3m) in player sales this summer – but are currently nowhere near that figure with just over a week remaining of the transfer window.
As a result, Lyon have banished Cherki to train by himself in an attempt to push him into accepting an offer from Crystal Palace – given the fact he only has 11 months remaining on his contract, and can negotiate an exit for free as soon as January.
The Ligue 1 outfit – owned by John Textor – are said to value the Frenchman at a sum of €15m (£13m).
It comes after L’Equipe claimed that Crystal Palace are keen to sign Cherki as a replacement for Michael Olise – a story which has since been backed up by the BBC.
Get French Football News add that Fulham are also hoping to sign the 20-year-old, who has been compared to Eden Hazard.
Since Get French Football News released their story, an update from The Athletic claims that Fulham have now made a £12m bid for Cherki – with Crystal Palace still alert to the situation.
No brainer
If this deal now fails to materialise, it would be incredibly disappointing.
Cherki is a generational talent who has the potential to become even better than Olise – in our view at least – with The Athletic even boldly stating he could surpass the legacy of 2022 Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema.
Of course, there is a reason why the France U23 international finds himself in his current dilemma, with Laurent Blanc previously admitting that the man born in Lyon can be slightly temperamental at times, telling Ligue 1’s official website: “He has a lot of talent, but it is necessary to use it well and use it for the good of the team. That was not always the case with Rayan and that led to some heated discussions with him.”
Nevertheless, if Oliver Glasner can get Cherki firing in that right-sided No.10 role which Olise shone in last season, Selhurst Park could witness something special in the 2024/25 campaign.
