Chelsea, West Ham United receive Rayan Cherki transfer boost?

The 20-year-old is widely regarded as one of the brightest French prospects to have emerged from Lyon's academy.

Cherki made his senior debut for Lyon at the age of just 16 and he has already gone on to make 116 appearances for the Ligue 1 club in all competitions, scoring 14 goals and registering 17 assists.

The attacker has also chipped in with 11 goals and six assists in 18 games for France's Under-21s, but he has endured a frustrating start to the 2023-24 campaign with Lyon, who sit rock bottom of Ligue 1 after winning just one of their opening 14 matches.

Cherki did not quite see eye to eye with Lyon's former head coach Fabio Grosso, who stated in October that the youngster is "not a special player" and needs to improve to fulfil "his immense potential".

Cherki was dropped from the matchday squad along with Alexandre Lacazette for Lyon's clash with Marseille in October, after one unnamed players labelled Gross as "one of the worst managers he had ever had" in the media.

Grosso is said to have lost the dressing room during his brief seven-game spell in charge of Lyon, who sacked the Italian on November 30, and Cherki has since started Les Gones' last two Ligue 1 matches.

Cherki put pen to paper on a new contract with Lyon in April, but he will see that deal expire in the summer of 2025, leading to speculation about his long-term future at the club.

According to Foot Mercato, the ball is in Cherki's court as to whether he wishes to commit his future to Lyon by extending his contract or opting to seek pastures new.

The report adds that Lyon will not be in a position of strength from January onwards and they are prepared to entertain offers of around €20m (£17.2m) for Cherki, although some sources claims that Les Gones are keen to recoup at slightly higher figure.

Both Chelsea and West Ham are said to have expressed an interest in Cherki last summer, but the Premier League duo are yet to come forward with a formal offer.

Paris Saint-Germain, meanwhile, are said to have 'tested the waters' in the previous transfer window, but they ultimately failed to take negotiations to an advanced stage.

Manchester United and Newcastle United are two more clubs believed to be keeping tabs on Cherki, who is set to be involved in Lyon's next Ligue 1 match at home to Toulouse on Sunday.